*Says N100bn can be generated yearly

By HENRY UMORU

ABUJA- Director-General, National Lottery Regulatory Commission, NLRC, Peter Igho, has said that the commission has raked in N1.8 billion from Lagos State alone.

He said if all the centres across the country begin to function, lottery can provide an alternative to the nation’s source of generating revenue.

At an interactive session  in Abuja, Igho, who also vowed to ban telecom service providers from engaging in promotion if they fail to be licensed to carry out such assignments, however, blamed the inability of the Nigerian lottery to realise its full potentials on ignorance and lack of transparency by operators.

Igho noted that aside the N1.8 billion which is with the National Lottery Trust Fund, the commission  projects  a revenue of well over N40 billion annually, adding that if Nigerians were educated properly. NLRC can boost the nation’s earning by  N100 billion annually.

The former Executive Director of Nigerian Television Authority, NTA, who explained that there was sharp difference between lottery and gambling,  said that though both are games of chance. He added that  the good cause element of lottery makes the difference.

Igho said many  developed countries such as Britain, China, USA, and even African countries such as  Niger Republic, Morocco South Africa have used the money developed from lottery to their advantage.