Lotto Receivers Threaten Massive Demo

Impeccable information emanating from the corridors of the Ghana Lotto Receivers Association (GLOA) and picked up by The Al-Hajj indicates that members of the association are set to break their long silence over what they describe as the ‘deliberate attempt by the National Lottery Authority to render them jobless’ with a massive demonstration in Accra next week.

Information gathered by The Al-Hajj revealed that about 5000 lotto receivers nationwide have been out of business for over two months now following the decision by SIMNET Ghana Limited to withdraw its services to the NLA.

Since October 3, 2012, SIMNET Ghana, a technical service provider for the NLA, has terminated its operations with the NLA because of disputes over the payment of bills for rendered services.

Consequently, members of the GLOA who operate terminal portable machines (TPMs) on the SIMNET platform have been out of business for more than two months now, additionally, their money has been locked up in the TPMs.

The total amount locked up in the SIMNET machine is unknown, but a lotto operative, who pleaded on conditions of anonymity said the total amount locked up in the machine was estimated at GH¢500,000.

“For over two months now, I have not worked and, worst of all, my money is locked up in the system,” a female lotto operator, told The Al-Hajj in Accra. According to her, in all the 22 years that she had worked as a lotto operator, “this is the first time I have had to go through a situation like that. Some of us borrowed money to invest in this business and we, therefore, expect the NLA to give us a tangible feedback”

The Al-Hajj investigations has revealed that SIMNET’s termination of services to the NLA may not have been sudden, after all, since, according to sources, EDITEC UK; a manufacturer supplier of SIMNET Ghana in letter date dated May 1, 2012 to the Chief Executive Officer of the NLA, the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning and SIMNET Ghana, threatened to terminate the services of EDITEC to SIMNET and, consequently, the national lottery operator because NLA owed EDITEC.

Following this developments in the lotto industry, executives and members of the GLOA have resolved to embark on a massive demonstration in Accra next week to drum home their demands

According to sources close to the GLOA, they have duly notified the Ghana Police Service of their intended demonstration and the only thing that will bar them from their intended action was to get the authorities of the NLA to work towards restoring the livelihoods of their members before next work.

“If they fail to address our concerns after our demonstration on next week, we will not complain again, but our thumps will speak come December 7” a furious member of the AGLOA threatened.

Efforts to get authorities of the NLA to respond o the issue as at press time yesterday proved futile.