Diana Asonaba Dapaah, a deputy minister of justice and attorney general, has started the seventh round of the National Lottery Authority's Popular 5/90 game (NLA).
According to the Authority, the game is dubbed, Aseda, which is Filipino for "Thanksgiving," as a way of showing appreciation to its devoted patrons.
In the authority's 60-year history, a game is being introduced for the first time that will be played on Sunday.
Ms. Asonaba Dapaah applauded the NLA for its efforts to give back to society through the Good Causes Foundation and urged them to continue. She also expressed hope that the Sunday Aseda Draw will revolutionise gaming and be a wonderful complement to the current games.
She said the inclusion in the games was a sign the authority would offer players a fun experience and assist NLA in raising money to support the government's development objectives.
Since consumers have supported the Authority for so long, creating happy experiences for them is the overarching goal, according to NLA Director-General Samuel Awuku.
"The purpose of Aseda is to express our gratitude to our devoted clients and to increase money for the authority. We feel that this innovation will make the NLA competitive in the lottery and gaming industries because it is the first big Sunday game to be offered in the 60 years of lottery in Ghana.
Black lottery
There are brighter days ahead, thank you for coming, he added, adding that Ghana had already been re-admitted into the African Lottery Association and had won the right to host the organization's annual conference in December.
According to him, Sundays were finally included in the days that Lotto Draws are held under Section 21 of the National Lotto Act, 2006 (ACT 72), and Regulation 21 of the Lottery Regulations, 2008 (L.I.1948), which give the NLA Director-General the authority to choose the dates and times for a draw of any national lottery. However, it took 17 years and 15 years after the ACT and Regulations were passed, respectively, to do so.
The NLA is required by Section 2(3) of ACT 722 to hold a lottery in order to pay for the care and protection of the physically or mentally challenged, the poor, the elderly, orphans, and impoverished children. He said that the draw will have huge communal advantages.
"To achieve this goal, NLA created the CARITAS Lottery platform as a means for Corporate Ghana to conduct trade promotions that were Lottery in both form and substance."
Mr. Awuku pointed out that the NLA Good Causes Foundation, which was similarly established to give meaning to Section 2(3) of the ACT, receives funding from lotteries run on the CARITAS platform.
The Good Causes Foundation's accomplishments since its founding are clear to everyone to observe. The ability to hold draws on Sundays implies that corporate entities who have hitherto been prohibited from doing so may now fulfil their desire," he continued.
The introduction of Sundays undoubtedly contributed to narrowing the gap that had existed for the previous 60 years, according to his assertion that the NLA's existence rested on the integrity of its draws.
He praised the NLA management and personnel for accomplishing this.
"Let me express my sincere gratitude to our overseeing ministry, the Ministry of Finance, for their support of the goal of making the NLA a top-tier lottery organisation. To my management and board, I want to thank you, Staff, for your support," he remarked.
The Sunday Aseda Draw, which concludes all of their daily activities, is their way of expressing "Thank You" to their devoted customers for playing their games all week, according to the Director of Operations, Dr. George Gyamfi-Osew.