‘Habal-habal’ driver’s daily habit pays off to the tune of P4.5M

The persistence of a “habal-habal” driver from South Cotabato finally paid off after he hit the P4.5 million jackpot in a Super Lotto 6/45 draw held last month.

The 38-year-old winner—a regular Lotto bettor for the past five years—claimed his prize from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) Monday.

“I never let a day pass by without placing a bet,” he told PCSO General Manager

Ferdinand Roxas II who handed the check for P4.5 million to him.

In fact, the habit had become so

deeply ingrained in the father of four

that even while on vacation in Cebu City on July 27, he took the time to go to a lotto outlet.

By some happy coincidence, the numbers he picked for that day (15-08-14-39-23-10)  won the jackpot.

The numbers were a combination of his loved ones’ birth dates and ages.

Joseph Muego, PCSO media officer,

said the winner had told Roxas that he would use the money to buy more motorcycles and put up his own habal-habal business. He added that he would set aside some of his winnings for his children’s education.

“From a habal-habal driver, he will now be an operator. That’s what the lotto jackpot can do,” Muego said.

The habal-habal is a common mode of public transportation in remote rural areas. Motorcycles are fitted with contraptions, including wooden planks on which people can seat, so that more passengers can be accommodated.