Superlotto pot to hit P145-M

The jackpot of the 6/49 "Superlotto" draw tonight is expected to breach the P145-million mark, equalling the biggest prize won last August since the online lottery game was launched by the government in 1995, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) said yesterday.

Manuel Garcia, PCSO public affairs director, said the prize of the 6/49 Superlotto games drawn every Thursday and Sundays has ballooned again because there was no winner of the jackpot for several weeks.

Garcia said this was the second time in the past two months that the jackpot has reached P145 million. A mayordoma from Bacolod City won the first P145-million jackpot in August.

Conrado Zabella, PCSO assistant general manager for the online sector, said earlier that the daily sales of lotto tickets had increased from P20 million to P30 million one day after the jackpot surpassed the P100-million mark.

"Lotto fans are lining up in various lotto outlets," he said.

Zabella said a total of 632 lucky players have become instant millionaires after winning prizes ranging from P3 million to P145 million.

He also said that with the brisk sales of lotto tickets, the PCSO was expecting to hit the P7-billion revenue target for this year.

Zabella also said the PCSO board, headed by Maria Livia "Honey Girl" Singson, had already approved the decentralization of a program providing medical assistance to the poor and needy.

"With more sales, the PCSO can generate more charity funds," he said. — Perseus Echeminada