Grig C. Montegrande/Inquirer
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) on Saturday said that once operations resume, it will hold a special draw for bettors who bought tickets before the government-imposed community quarantine due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) threat.
“Once we will resume operations, magkakaroon po ng 15 days po ito na magkakaroon po kami ng special draw, PCSO General Manager Royina Garma said during the Laging Handa online press briefing.
(Once we will resume operations, there will be a special draw for 15 days.)
“Advance na pagbili ng ticket that is allowed is six days. So itong six days, nakabili na po itong mga taong-bayan ng advance ticket, ida-draw po namin yan once mag-resume kami, that will take 15 days,” she further explained.
The advance buying of tickets that is allowed is six days. So during these six days, when the public bought their advance tickets, we will draw them once we resume operations, that will take 15 days.)
“Actually, we have already simulated a draw,” Garma said.
The PCSO General Manager said that if a bettor wins, it is important that he or she should keep their ticket.
Preparation for resumption in place
And while there is no specific date when the PCSO will resume operations, Garma said that preparations were already in place.
“Dun po sa pagre-resume ng operations namin, kami po ay sumulat na po sa office ng ating Presidente, hinihintay na lang po namin yung approval,” she said.
(About the resumption of operations, we already wrote to the Office of the President, and we are only awaiting their approval.)
Should operations resume, minimum health protocols such as wearing of face masks, social distancing and providing a clear divider between the PCSO agent and bettor are required.
Previously, the PCSO announced that it would slash the price of a lotto ticket—from P24 to P20—to make it more affordable for bettors who are looking for additional sources of income, as well as to beef up its revenue collections by luring more bettors to play lotto.