Laos Lotto provides one of the few opportunities for ordinary citizens in this communist nation to dream big in an attempt to win big – whether that dream involves purchasing a home, car or vacation destination – which lottery dreams often provide in an economy dominated by government corruption and gangsters.
Xia Rattanakone, one of the more renowned winners, grew up in an orphanage and plans to use some of her winnings from Laos’ state lottery to assist those she and her husband grew up with, as well as visit her native country to search for birth family members they never met during turbulent 1960s and ’70s years when Laos was recovering from decades of civil war and political upheaval.
Uncertainties have recently surfaced regarding how the lottery in this landlocked Southeast Asian nation is run, according to RFA sources. They indicate that lottery officials may rig the system by manipulating winning numbers to limit payouts. Vilasack Phommaluck of the State Lottery Steering Committee denied these allegations as “untrue”, yet suggested changes may come regarding this issue, including cutting drawing times from two per week down to just one per week.
Some lottery players have raised concerns regarding how the lottery selects its winning numbers. Although a committee checks balls prior to each drawing, some players have accused the company of failing to put enough weight onto them, which may alter how they bounce and land into their hole.
Phommaluck refuted these accusations, noting that his company tests balls to ensure they are of equal weight, while noting that its steering committee may reduce drawing times to promote greater trust in the game.
However, he explained that the committee would not block specific numbers or sell tickets for them, since that responsibility lies with the lottery company itself. He further commented that broadcasting live drawings over both Facebook and TV would not prevent manipulation of results.
The government has begun attempting to rein in the lottery by restricting how often it is drawn and shutting down informal football lotteries and lottery chances purchased via short messaging services. An order issued on August 17 from Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith’s Office required that Ministry of Finance, which manages legal state lotteries, collaborate with other ministries on improving transparency.
Lao Football Association told RFA this is the first time its lottery had been thoroughly investigated, and was very disappointed by its findings. “We hope it can be improved in future investigations,” according to their spokesman, though he would not disclose how much companies that operate lotteries pay in concession fees to government for operating them – although these firms may belong to relatives of senior national politicians. Reported by Ounkeo Souksavanh and Brooks Boliek with editing by Richard Finney.