Saephan from Iu Mien ethnic group purchased his winning Powerball ticket at Plaid Pantry near Portland and has slept on it, praying that he would win and writing down numbers on paper to place under his pillow at night. He shared this fortune with both his wife and friend!
Lotteries provide significant incentives to encourage participation by offering significant payouts for matching a sequence of numbers. Furthermore, the lottery structure multiplies stakes if multiple matches occur–for instance a 1,000 Kip bet could yield a 6-million Kip prize from matching four numbers! Unfortunately though, only about one out of ten tickets will actually end up as winners.
Still popular and an integral source of revenue for the country, lottery remains an immensely popular pastime and source of profit for its operators, the government. Due to its success, state lottery enterprises were formed and currently oversee the legal gambling operation in India. Furthermore, this company offers both digital versions as well as scratch-off tickets which have proven popular with buyers.
Suspicion that the results were falsified was raised when three consecutive drawings at the end of September involved numbers 367, 267 and 567 – numbers associated with turtles which many Lao gamblers believe bring bad luck – appeared. A source connected to the Finance Ministry lottery committee informed RFA there are also some issues regarding weight disparity of balls used for drawing; according to this source some balls may weigh more than others.
Sources have further claimed that the number-picking process isn’t transparent. According to them, lottery board employees receive commissions based on how much money they bring in from lottery ticket sales – something which has led some individuals to cheat while their results of each drawing are only announced minutes after taking place.
Lao government officials have responded to public displeasure with some changes to its lottery. Drawings will now only occur twice every week and scratch-off lotteries no longer available; hopefully this change will restore public faith in the game. However, some individuals have turned to purchasing illegal lotteries from foreign sources in an attempt to increase chances of winning big prizes; according to Bounchom this practice lures people into habitual gambling which poses public safety threats; therefore regulating these transactions and exploring moral dimensions associated with gambling in Laos are necessary steps