NLA
The National Lottery Authority (NLA), in collaboration with the Police administration, has arrested seven illegal private lotto operators in the Central Region, and arraigned them before court.
According to a statement issued by the NLA yesterday, a swoop carried out in the Central Region, specifically Cape Coast, resulted in the arrest of the seven persons.
The culprits included the operator of Lucky Star and five other accomplices and the agent of Sikatuo Lotto.
The seven suspects were charged under the National Lotto Act, 2006 (Act 722) under Section 18(1) and (2), under the reading ‘Prohibition in Relation to Coupons’, and Section 19 which relates to offences in relation to a coupon.
“They pleaded not guilty and the presiding judge requested them to provide their valid licences on the next date of adjournment. The case was adjourned to the 10th day of February 2022”, disclosed the statement from the NLA, signed by Goodfellow Dei Ofei, the Public Relations Manager.
Licensing window
After the closure of the licensing window in October 2021, and the subsequent clamping down on illegal lotto operators, there were calls on the NLA to extend the licensing window to give the opportunity to individuals who were not able to register for the licences to do so.
The Authority eventually listened to the calls for the extension. “NLA wishes to announce that following the incessant requests made by some Private Lotto Operators and other stakeholders, it is extending the closing date of the 2021/2022 licensing year from Thursday December 16, 2021 to Thursday December 23, 2021,” it announced in a statement at the time.
The unlicensed lotto operators as well as any interested entities and/or individuals who wished to be licensed within the legal framework of the National Lotto Act, 2006 (Act 722) and VAG Act 844 were subsequently asked to contact the Operations office at the NLA for licensing application forms and payment term.
Warning
The NLA, in collaboration with the security services, began clamping down on all unlicensed operators from November 1, 2021, and warned that the exercise would continue into 2022.
Speaking to the media after the court proceedings involving the seven suspects arrested in Cape Coast, the Public Relations Manager of NLA, Goodfellow Dei Ofei, warned again that the NLA would not relent on its drive to clear illegal operators from the lottery industry.
“We have kept a human face to the whole exercise and have been extremely patient with these operators. They were all over asking for more time to get licensed, and we graciously granted the request by giving them a 7-day extension,” he said.
He recalled the difficult time the Director-General of the Authority, Samuel Awuku, had to go through convincing the Board to grant the extension.
“But these people are still bent on operating illegally. We will walk the talk, and go after them. We will not end by arresting them, but will prosecute them as we have done today,” he added
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