Razak Kojo Opoku(PhD) writes: How the driver (KGL) became very important to the car owner (NLA)

First and foremost, I was extremely surprised to read an article from the Fourth Estate shared by Sulemana Briamah, making some comparisons between:

1. Telecom Business Model and Lottery Business Model of NLA-KGL.
2. Dealers and Agents of Scratch Cards for Telecom companies and Lotto Marketing Companies for the National Lottery Authority (NLA).

Comparing lottery business to selling of scratch cards in exchange for commission from Telecom companies clearly shows that Mr. Sulemana Briamah and the Fourth Estate lack full knowledge, understanding, experience, expertise, and competence when it comes to the lottery industry.

For the purpose of clarity, the Telecom Business Model has absolutely no correlation with the Lottery Business Model.

In fact, both business models operate under different industries and are regulated by different authorities.

The Telecom Business Model is under the regulatory body of the National Communications Authority (NCA), whereas the Lottery Business Model is under the regulatory body of the National Lottery Authority (NLA).

The NCA’s laws and NLA laws are completely different from each other, so comparing them is quite dishonest.

Based on their assumptions, can the Fourth Estate and Sulemana Briamah give honest answers to the following questions:

1. Do the Telecom Companies pay winning tickets to the customers of the scratch cards dealers and agents on daily basis?
2. Do the Telecom Companies pay 25% commissions based on the money used by the dealers and agents to purchase the scratch cards?
3. Do the Telecom Companies conduct “Scratch Card Draws” for the customers of the scratch card dealers and agents?
4. Are the Telecom Companies’ regulators just like the National Lottery Authority (NLA)?
5. Did Dealers and Agents of Scratch Cards invest millions of dollars into the marketing of the cards?
6. Did Dealers and Agents of Scratch Cards invest millions of dollars into the I. T infrastructure and system engineering for the sale of scratch cards to the general public with zero investments from the Telecom companies?

Providing honest and concrete answers to the above questions would let the Fourth Estate and Sulemana Briamah appreciate the fact that, it was unfair to compare the scratch card business of Telecom companies to the lottery business under the National Lottery Authority (NLA).

Now to the perfect case of the NLA-KGL Deal:

1. Fourth Estate and Sulemana Briamah should kindly take their time to thoroughly read all the 58 Sections of the National Lotto Act, 2006 (Act 722) and point it out to their followers on Facebook, which section of Act 722 specifically made mentions of NLA paying commission to a Lotto Marketing Company participating in Online lottery?

Can they indicate which specific Section of Act 722 talks about Online Lottery?

2. Just like the LMC selling in the kiosks using Point of Sale Terminals are required to pre-pay for the NLA coupons, KGL Technology Limited as an online LMC also pre-pays each quarter for NLA Coupons.
3. All the money NLA receives from KGL is paid into the Lotto Account as required by law. It is, therefore, the responsibility of NLA to transfer the net balance into the Lotto Account every month to the Consolidated Fund.

The net balance is rightly so because what if there is no net balance in the Lotto Account after payments of Winning Tickets, Commissions, Administrative, and General Expenses by NLA?

If at any point the money in the Lotto Account is not enough to pay winners, the excess can be charged against the Consolidated Fund (Section 33 of Act 722).

However, in practice, NLA has NEVER taken money from the Consolidated Fund to pay winners of the national lotto. Also, it does not even make sense to use public funds in the Consolidated Fund to pay winners of national lotto while the country needs funds to take care of very important national projects.

4. Despite the technology being used by KGL in partnership with the Telecom Companies to sell lottery products, all the monies NLA receives from KGL go into the Lotto Account.

What is the Lotto Account? Let me educate the Fourth Estate, and Sulemana Briamah.

The “Lotto Account is any official Bank Account operated by the National Lottery Authority (NLA)”.

5. What empirical research has Fourth Estate or Sulemana Briamah conducted in the lottery industry particularly Online lottery industry for them to conclude that about 90% of lotto stakers now buy their lotto on their phones directly using short codes (USSD)?

If 90% of Lotto Stakers buy lotto via USSD then how come banker-2-banker lotto operators and agents control 80% of the lottery industry in Ghana?

If 90% buy lotto via USSD, then how many buy lotto via Point of Sale Terminals (POSTs)?

And if only 10% are buying lotto via Point of Sale Terminals (POSTs), then how many are buying lotto via Paper issued by Banker-2-Banker lotto operators and agents?

If 90% are buying lotto via USSD, then how come Lotto Marketing Companies and Private Lotto Operators and Agents are still actively involved in the lottery business?

6. Was NLA successful in experimenting with different technology partners to reap full benefits from online sales of its lotto business?

If Fourth Estate and Sulemana Briamah care to know before KGL coming on board, the NLA in partnership with private technology companies FAILED to benefit from online sales of lotto such as “Mobi Game 2 Sure”, “Mobile 5/90” , NLA 5/90(*890#) and “NLA Soccer Cash”

Has Fourth Estate, as a patriotic CSO, researched on the financial losses NLA incurred during the operations of Mobi Game 2 Sure, Mobile 5/90, NLA 5/90(*896#) and Soccer Cash?

7. Yes, Keed Ghana Limited paid GHC 10 million as penalty to NLA for piloting *959# without the appropriate 5/90 Online License Agreement, and that was a good decision by both NLA and Keed Ghana Limited.

The general public would also like to know the answers from Fourth Estate and Sulemana Briamah regarding the following questions:

(a) How much Alpha Lotto Limited paid to NLA for illegally operating NLA 5/90 USSD and Web online lottery via *896# for 11 months?

(b) How much Onassis Lotto has paid to NLA for illegally operating NLA 5/90 USSD and Web online lottery via *859#?

(c) How much did operators of www.theb2blotto.com pay to NLA for operating illegally the NLA 5/90 lottery via Web Online?

The answers to the above 3 questions would illuminate the understanding of Fourth Estate and Sulemana Briamah that they are just being unprofessional in their investigations against NLA-KGL deal.