Maid wins half of P51-M lotto jackpot

MANILA, Philippines—From maid to millionaire.

Half of the P51,241,667  jackpot of the 6/42 Lotto draw last Sept. 29 was apparently won by a 40-year-old helper from Paete, Laguna.

The teary-eyed, overjoyed maid, accompanied by her supportive employer, had gone on Wednesday to the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office headquarters in Pasay City, to claim the check for P25,620,833.70.

It is apparently more money that the married woman with five children has ever known. She told PCSO general manager Jose Ferdinand Rojas II that growing up in poverty, she never even finished first-grade. Her husband and children, now grown, also could not afford school.

The woman has been relying on faith, as she started betting on the national lottery only a year ago. She said she would tuck the lotto ticket in a Bible and then pray.

Now that her prayers have been answered, the winner is so overwhelmed she has chosen to simply deposit the money in a bank, for the meantime.

The other winner was a male retired government employee from San Andres Bukid, Manila. He already claimed his prize last Oct. 2.