THE Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) yesterday said the person who claimed lottery game prizes 20 times in just one month, which was disclosed by Sen. Raffy Tulfo on Tuesday, collected winnings for its digital games, not the jackpot lottery games.
“To be clear, the reported 20 claims made by one person does not necessarily make that claimant the winner of 20 digit games,” the PCSO said in a statement as it acknowledged the existence of the list cited by the senator.
However, the agency said the list of names “should not be interpreted in a manner other than what it is meant to be.”
“That said list included the name of a person who, on several occasions, claimed lower tier prizes in the digit games. To begin with, we would like to underscore that those are not jackpot lottery games but only for our digit games,” it said.
“What Sen. Tulfo apparently failed to notice was that the same list would also show that for jackpot-bearing games like Lotto 6/42, Mega Lotto 6/45, Super Lotto 6/49, Grand Lotto 6/55, and Ultra 6/58, there was no winner who won more than once,” it added.
The PCSO said the “the real issue here… is the claimant, and not the number of times that he supposedly won as what Sen. Tulfo seemed to have assumed.”
The PCSO explained that for its digit games such as 2D, 3D, 4D, and 6D, lotto outlet agents or representatives of the winners can collect the winnings on their behalf.
“Since they were just minor prizes, a winner can ask someone he trusts to claim the prize for him through the so-called ‘paki -claim’,” it said.
It said that some winners resort to the scheme due to distance and lack of valid identification cards.
“Since prizes of P10,000 and up must be claimed at the branch offices… (claimants) will be required to present a valid ID,” it said, adding that “some winners would not want to go to branch office because of added expenses, so the lotto agents would act as Good Samaritans and do it for them.”
The process, it said, is different for winners of the jackpot-bearing games as they are required to personally appear at the PCSO main office in Mandalauyong City to claim their jackpot prizes.
“Certainly, our lotto winners’ safety, security, and well-being are paramount in all our endeavors,” the PCSO said.
“Rest assured that we remain dedicated and committed to fostering a gaming environment that upholds fairness and ensures the integrity of every single draw,” it also said.
Tulfo on Tuesday cited a PCSO list which he said showed that that one bettor appeared to have won lotto jackpots 20 times in one month, while another won 10 times.
“Ito nga po ang sabi ko medyo nakakataas ng kilay. Meron doon isang tao nanalo ng 20 times in one month. Meron din 10 times in one month. Siguro magkapangalan (‘yung mga tao) pero pare-parehong premyo ang pinanaluhan, paulit-ulit in one month (This one caught my attention because there is one name that won the jackpot 20 times in one month. There is another who won 10 times in one month. Maybe they (bettors) have the same names, but the lotto games they won are also the same),” Tulfo said.
“Lalong tumambak ang mga questions (This raised more questions),” he also said.
Lyssa Grace Paganao, chief of staff of the PCSO’s Office of the General Manager, submitted to the Senate on February 1 the names of winners and the respective games they won from July 1 last year to January 30, 2024.
