Perm Sec. advocates for NYSC lottery scheme

Dr Jamila Shu’Ara, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Special Duties and Inter-governmental Affairs, has urged the National Lottery Regulatory Commission to introduce a lottery scheme targeted at corps members.

Shu’Ara made this known in Abuja at opening of a three-day lottery stakeholders conference and exhibition.

The theme of the exhibition is "Repositioning the Nigeria Lottery Industry for National Development.

The permanent secretary said that the scheme would afford corps members the opportunity to benefit from the country’s revenue.

"The potential of the lottery business to the human population cannot be over-emphasised.

"In many countries, lottery is used to positively impact on the lives of the citizenry.

"The ministry is now giving a matching order to the commission to introduce a national lottery scheme for the .

"The marching order is to with every stakeholder so that we can develop a more socially acceptable product for our citizens.’’

She added that the government would give the necessary policy support to ensure that a big league of revenue earners are created for the country.

In his remark, the Director-General of the Commission, Mr Adolphus Ekpe, noted that for the commission to realise its full potential, there was the need for total enhancement of the market.

Ekpe said that this could only be achieved through the automated capture of all transactions of the operators.

"In line with our operations, the automation of the workflow and reporting process of the departments and units is in progress and expected to be completed soon.

"It is planned that all our licensed operators will be on our monitoring platform, to effectively track all transactions, thereby strengthening accountability and achieving our expected revenue projections.

The director-general said that following discussions with the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, a Federal High Court 8 had been designated to trial illegal lottery operators.

He added that the commission had also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Nigeria Police Force and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for effective monitoring of lottery activities.

Also speaking, Mr Henry Uwadiae, the Chairman, NLRC 10th Anniversary Committee, said that Nigeria could turn its human resources into economic assets with an annual revenue yield amounting to billions of naira through lottery

"We have not been able to reap bountifully from lottery business in Nigeria because of the deep rooted and huge misconceptions and negative perception based on entrenched cultural and religious beliefs.

"With the right infrastructure, playing population and best lottery practice, Nigeria can turn its human resources into an economic asset,’’ Uwadiae said.

Mr Bello Maigari, the Director of operations, National Lottery Trust Fund, said that Nigeria had benefited from the proceeds of lottery, adding that the commissioning of sporting equipment for 1,000 public primary schools across the country was under way.