Rampant illegal lottery in Sarawak costing us millions yearly – Sports Toto
KUCHING: Sports Toto says it is losing a huge chunk of its income in Sarawak due to rampant sales of illegal lottery.
Sports Toto Malaysia Sdn Bhd general manager Nerine Tan said over the past five years, the income of the country’s legal lottery operator in the state has plunged by millions of ringgit, or at least 10 per cent, per annum.
“The selling of forecast numbers illegally can now be found anywhere including coffee shops, ( mobile phone) reload shops, sundry shops as well as at private homes.
“This illegal activity has drastically affected the income of Sports Toto,” she told a press conference after officiating the opening of Sports Toto Siburan, near here on Sunday.
Also present were Sports Toto Malaysia Sdn Bhd ( Sales Operation) assistant general manager Lee Suan Boon, sales and administration senior manager R Jagadis Kumar, Sports Toto East Malaysia assistant manager Renee Wong and Sports Toto Kuching Division senior sales executive Helen Tan Puay Cheng.
Nerine described the actions of those who purchase lottery from the ‘ black market’ as supporting the activities of criminals while, at the same time, affecting the government’s revenue derived from the sales tax of Sports Toto.
According to her, the Sarawak government obtains a 10 per cent tax out of each RM1 lottery ticket which can contribute to millions of ringgit annually.
“As a ‘rakyat’, we must support things that bring revenue to the government, regardless of who the government is, because the revenue can be used to develop the country including funding national schools, police for security, and so on.
“But for those who purchase illegal lottery, this means that he or she supports criminals who may be involved in drug trafficking, human trafficking and so on,” she added.
Nerine also noted that in addition to contributing to the government’s revenue, Sports Toto also contributes towards the development of the country’s sports, culture and community through its corporate social responsibility ( CSR).
“We contribute around RM60 million every year to the National Sports Council to develop sports such as badminton and diving as well as sepnding millions of ringgit to run welfare programmes.
“As such, I hope that the public will continue to support Sports Toto, which is legitimate, and to not purchase illegal lottery,” she stressed.
Meanwhile, Lee said the ‘ black market’ activity is not only of great concern in Sarawak, but also in Peninsular Malaysia and Sabah.
“In Peninsular Malaysia for instance, there are many teenagers who are involved in the selling of illegal lottery.”
When asked to comment that many customers would rather purchase illegal lottery due to the lucrative cash prizes which can go as high as RM3,500 for the first prize, Lee said Sports Toto will not be swayed by such an offer.
He explained that this is because the cash prizes currently being offered have been set not only by Sports Toto, but by other legal lottery operators in the country as well.