The National Lottery Regulatory Commission, NLRC, has said that it will soon  grant special licenses to expert companies, that will run national promotions across all mobile operator networks. This will enable Nigerians to continue to enjoy mobile lottery games, while supporting good causes

The commission, in a statement noted  the commitment of the Federal Government to nurture the industry and guarantee that all mobile lottery potential were exploited for the good of Nigeria.

Before now,  the Federal Government, the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC and National Lottery Regulatory Commission, NLRC, have been following with a growing concern, the activity of all mobile operators in Nigeria.

The GSM license granted to mobile operators, according to NLRC,  does not cover nor allow mobile operators to engage in operation of lotteries, or gambling activities.

However,  under the National Lottery Act of 2005, the NLRC is entitled to grant short term permits to individual or corporate bodies for organising promotional lotteries.

Over the past few years, such permits were granted at various times to mobile operators, for running various promotions with the intention of allowing mobile operators to promote their brands, products and services.

But the  permits granted to mobile operators were never intended at allowing telecommunication operators to run lotteries or gambling operations. NLRC’s view is that such activities should be operated and managed by professional dedicated lottery companies supervised closely by NLRC.

Unfortunately, the permits granted to mobile operator promotions were misused and exploited for generating quick profit, which is not linked to the promotion of mobile operator services.