SA Lotto – Scam or media nightmare?
UPDATE: 16 Feb 2010 (13h50 SAST) – click here for details
UPDATE: 16 Feb 2010 (18h05 SAST) – click here for details
Lottery tickets are something I don’t buy very often, in fact, very seldom, and often just on a whim, spend a little if you win you win, if you don’t, well, better luck next time. To those who religiously buy tickets twice a week for each and every draw I feel sorry for them as they’re paying ‘a poor man’s tax‘.
This past Sunday the media announced that only one person had bought a valid ticket with the winning numbers, which meant that one person held a ticket for R91 million.
In a press release Dr Bongani Khumalo, chairman and CEO of National Lottery operator Gidani said: “One incredibly lucky lottery player has finally won Friday’s gigantic R91m PowerBall Jackpot in the lottery game which gripped the imagination of the nation for weeks and weeks while the six winning numbers proved elusive.” – source IOL
Then, early Monday morning the media announced who the winner of the R91 million was (stupid mistake number 1).
… a deaf and mute cleaner at a hardware shop in Wynberg, won over R91m in the national lottery’s PowerBall game, reports an Afrikaans daily.
…
The family are reportedly now staying at an undisclosed location after being approached for money. – source IOL
Why post the name of someone who won the latest lottery? Even less so a deaf mute? From whom did they get the winning ticket holder’s details from? And if he’s a deaf mute, did he even give them permission to publish his details? Then later in the day the following report was published.
The Cape Town family who won R91-million in Friday night’s PowerBall draw has been spirited away, apparently by employees of the National Lottery. – source IOL
It’s no surprise then that all the vultures come out to take advantage of a family who’ve just been named as the winners of a huge lottery win.
Then this morning (mistake number 2 – can you say back-pedal, back-pedal) the media (and the lottery company) announce that the winner claimed by the media is in fact NOT the lottery winner.
… a Cape Town cleaner, isn’t the winner of the PowerBall jackpot of over R91m, says the National Lottery Board, a report says.
…
However, Board chief executive Vevek Ram says that someone else won the prize, and wishes to remain anonymous. – source IOL
Am I the only cynical one that thinks something smells really wrong about this? Why the denial all of a sudden? Is the lottery in South Africa rigged (surely not?), is this a PR/media nightmare that they’re trying to get themselves out of (and failing dismally)? Was there really even a winner? If the family named in the media are not the winners, how long will it be before they’re no longer hounded by the vultures out there who want a piece of their, alleged, financial freedom?
What do you think?
UPDATE: 16 Feb 2010 (13h50 SAST)
It would appear that one or more journalists did not do their job correctly. As it has now come to light that the alleged winner’s winning lottery ticket numbers are indeed those drawn BUT are in fact not for the R91m draw but tonight’s draw instead.
… a deaf man from Parkwood, has a PowerBall ticket with Friday night’s winning numbers on it. But while the numbers match up, the date is for tonight’s draw.
The Cape Argus’s examination of the ticket shows that the numbers match up to Friday night’s winning numbers, but the date at the top of the ticket reads “First draw – 16/02/2010″, suggesting that the ticket is only eligible in tonight’s draw. – source IOL
I guess my media nightmare heading might still hold true because it seems people have jumped the gun in more ways than one as seen here:
[his] rags-to-riches story has seized South Africa’s attention, prompting the Minister for Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities, Noluthando Mayende-Sibiya, to issue a statement congratulating the family.- source IOL
Not sure whether or not the statement has in fact been issued by Noluthando Mayende-Sibiya yet but it would be a media nightmare if it has.
What’s that saying: Don’t count all your chickens before they’ve hatched.
UPDATE: 16 Feb 2010 (18h05 SAST)
Now, almost two days after the fact, it would appear that all the blame lies with the person who claimed to have had the winning ticket (but for the wrong draw day).
National lottery operator Gidani on Tuesday said it was battling to understand why a Cape Town man claimed to have won a Powerball jackpot of more than R91 million.
…
The real winner, a 43-year-old wife and mother of two also from the Western Cape, had the millions handed over to her on Tuesday. – source EWN
And in one of the polls run by IOL today they asked readers whether or not they would want their name made public if they had won the lottery or not. Only a small number voted Yes:
Of the 978 people who participated in the poll; 97 percent (952 votes) said “No” and 3 percent (26 votes) said “Yes”. – source IOL
In related news a couple in the UK found out that they won £56m in the local lottery.
The couple, who would make around £s;47 000 a week in interest if they banked all their jackpot, said they were confident that the huge win will not spoil their children.
…
The family plan to move from their £235 000 three-bedroom semi in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, to a six-bedroom detached, ideally with a pool. But they want to stay in the same area where their children enjoy school and have lots of friends. – source IOL
Tags: lottery, media, news, pr mistake, ramblings, scam
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I hardly play the lottery any more as I know it is a poor man’s tax, as you quite rightly say Demitri.
I find it so strange that people will fork out money week after week for a 1 in a billion chance to win big but when you show them an opportunity that has much better odds of success, perhaps around 50:50, they are not interested! Can you explain that to me? Perhaps those people are destined to stay where they are in life financially – very sad.
I know if I won it big (highly unlikely of course) I would definitely keep it quiet. Do people really think if they splash it all over the news they are going to be happy all their lives with the vultures, as you say, circling? I really do not see the point of showing off your sudden wealth like that as it only breeds contempt.
The lottery company should be rapped over the knuckles, hard, for what they did as well! No respect for privacy – disgusting!
Great read, and very sad indeed. I guess its a fine line (from the lottery-people) in respecting one’s privacy, and avoiding allegations of pronouncing “fake winners” – in most competitions there is a clause in the entry which states that you, the entrant/contestant, consents to allowing your name and photo to be published in the press – this is partly for PR (as you point out), and also partly to “prove” to the public that someone won the thing.
Perhaps its most sad that we, the public, are so distrustful of these organisations, that they have to prove to us that someone won, thereby opening that person to huge pressure. Also, just as sad, is that we have plenty reason to be suspicious…
@Baldricman, yes good points. It is very sad that the few dodgy people in this world spoil it for everyone else. Fear, after all, is THE biggest motivator and extremely hard to overcome, I suppose that is why so many companies abuse it to sell their products.
Thanks for commenting guys.
@Babis – yeah it’s interesting that people will rather spend money on something with lower odds of winning (because everyone else does?) rather than on something where their odds are much better. Is it that ‘too good to be true‘ factor that dissuades people?
@BaldricMan – I too understand the Lotto companies need to prove to the public that someone actually did win – but isn’t that what auditors are for? I for one would much rather trust a well-known auditing firm’s confirmation that a winner was indeed found than the Lotto company simply claiming someone had won.
Maybe it’s part of the level of underhandedness and corruption in this country that makes us (me) more distrustful of companies like the Lotto company.
I still think it should be the right of the winner to determine if they should be named or not as winners in a public forum.
@Deems – agree with you too but “trust” auditing companies? Do you remember Enron? Were they not in bed with their auditors? Where companies themselves pay auditors they can never really be independent.
Sadly, many people stake their financial futures on winning the lottery. This is definitely the worst case ever of “too good to be true” but millions of people all over the world do it, not just in the UK and SA.
As for following the crowd, the saying “sheep get slaughtered” is so true! The real way to financial freedom is to do something that NOT everyone else is doing.
Hi Deems
Here by us, a couple won £50m odd on Friday. Photo’s and names splashed all over the papers and web. Included already, is the ever-growing shopping list of things that needs to be upgraded and the others that will get a piece of the pie – because now we are rich…..
As far as I can remember – a condition of buying a ticket is for them to use you and your name in the publicity surrounding the winning – but I could be wrong.
What would be REALLY interesting is to see the budget breakdown of the lotto foundations. How much is going to the operator, goverment, the winner and ultimately back to the community – weren’t the community the ones that were suppose to be the beneficiary of this type of fund-raising??????
Yes, I heard the news of the £50m winner in the UK. I believe there are terms and conditions to playing the Lottery game that they are allowed to use your name when publishing results but this surely should be changed as the discretion in whether or not your want your name made public should lie with the winner.
Correct – not sure about other countries but in SA the main beneficiaries of Lotto takings are charities, one would think that this is still happening and is audited appropriately.
In the UK you can opt to be an anony mouse but from all the people that go public they must either be bribed or love the publicity.
That’s insane to publish the names of Lottery winners. Unfortunately, a Lottery winner can often become a victim of friends and family also.
There is a big investigation taking place as I type of a $30 Million Lotto winner in Florida who was recently killed for his winnings by persons close to him.
If that’s not reason enough to change the laws surrounding publication of winner’s names then I don’t know what is.
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