Jobless man wins P61-M lotto prize

Gone are the days when he had to think of how his family would survive the day.

After winning the P61-million jackpot prize in last week’s 6/42 lotto draw, an unemployed man from Zambales province can now provide for his family—and pay his debts.

The lone winner took home exactly P61,315,696 after he correctly picked the winning combination 05-11-13-22-26-38 in the Feb. 3 draw, according to Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) acting Chair and General Manager Jose Ferdinand Rojas II.

The jackpot prize reached P61 million after no lucky bettor guessed the right combination in the game’s past 16 draws.

The 38-year-old father of two was “speechless” when he claimed his prize at the PCSO head office in Mandaluyong City, Rojas said.

“He was shocked at his newfound wealth and couldn’t contain his happiness,” Rojas said. “He couldn’t believe that after being a longtime player of the lottery, he would finally win the jackpot prize.”

Birth dates

Rojas said that the winner, who bought only a single ticket, revealed that he got his lucky combination from the ages and birth dates of his wife and kids.

When Rojas asked what he intended to do with his winnings, the lucky bettor said that he was still “undecided” about what he would do with his millions.

Lotto 6/42 is drawn every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and has a minimum jackpot prize of P6 million.

Ultra Lotto

Rojas said that a player of the Ultra Lotto 6/58 draw came close on Sunday night to winning the minimum jackpot prize of P50 million.

He said that the player missed a single number that would have made him the first winner in four years of the agency’s newest game.

The winning combination of the draw of the 6/58 game was 57-05-53-42-18-55. Rojas said the player won the game’s second prize of P280,000.

Rojas said that the PCSO was “happy with the turnout” of the game, which generated sales of P12,559,100.

Charitable programs

Rojas said the PCSO “expects more players to join the game,” drawn every Sunday and Friday, especially when the jackpot prize starts to accumulate.

He noted that when the jackpot prizes were high, lotto players “tended to patronize it more.”

Rojas earlier said the PCSO hoped the public would support the 6/58 game to allow the agency to “raise more funds for medical assistance and other charitable programs.”

The PCSO assistant general manager for charity, Larry Cedro, said that last year the agency helped more than 50,000 dialysis patients and financed the cost of hospitalization of more than 80,000 others.

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