Philippines lottery: Freak draw from one table raises suspicions – and hundreds of winners

More than 400 bettors win jackpot prize worth more than $4m

A shock lottery win for more than 400 people in the Philippines has triggered a controversy with senators demanding an investigation into the “suspicious” results.

Unexpected scrutiny hit the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) last Saturday when 433 bettors won the Grand Lotto jackpot prize worth more than ₱236m ($4m).

The draw outcome prompted Senate minority leader Aquilino Pimentel III to demand a probe as all the winning numbers were found to be divisible by nine.

“These lotto games are authorised by the Republic of the Philippines. Therefore, we need to maintain and protect the integrity of these gambling games,” he said.

Senator Risa Hontiveros also supported the demand for an investigation, saying: “We just want to rule out any doubts in the public mind that the results have been manipulated.”

“While we recognise that people tend to bet in patterns, we also want to make sure the system is secure, free from glitches, and trustworthy,” she added.

According to the rules of the games, participants select six numbers from one to 55. The winner of the jackpot should match all the numbers drawn by the lottery’s operator.

Assuming over 10 million people put the bets, the probability of having many winners was “1 out of 1 followed by 1,224 zeros”,  Guido David, a mathematic professor at the University of the Philippines, told BBC News. He added that since the number is so large, he could not quantify it.

Meanwhile, Melquiades Robles, the general manager for Sweepstakes, denied any irregularity with the results saying this happens as bettors often tend to cling to numbers they choose.

“Many have held on to their numbers. It’s not only good to be loyal to your wives and husbands, it’s also good to be loyal to your numbers,” Mr Robles said.

“I’ve been betting on pattern 9, pattern 8, pattern 7 and pattern 6 for many years and I’m thankful I just won,” one of the winners was quoted as saying by BBC News.

Mr Robles has however, issued a statement saying that “PCSO will work double and overtime to expedite the processing of the jackpot winners’ check.”