THE BEGINNING OF LOTTERIES IN THE PHILIPPINES

Historically, lotteries have been in existence in the Philippines as early as

1833. Under the auspices of private enterprises called Empresa de Reales
Loteria Espanolas de Filipinas, the Spanish Government conducted loterias
to generate revenues. In fact, our own national hero Dr. Jose Rizal won Php
6,200.00 in the draw of 1892, while on exile in Dapitan. He donated his
winnings to an educational project. This altruistic act gives an inkling of
what could be done if the lottery was harnessed for charitable and social
welfare projects.

With the outbreak of the Philippine Revolution, the loteria was forced to stop
operations. And it was not until the early 1930s that the idea of holding
lottery games was revived. In 1932, the first Sweepstakes draw was
conducted by the government to raise funds to support sports projects for
the Filipino youth through the Philippine Amateur Athletic Federation
(PAAF) the beneficiary of the first draw.

The PAAF Sweepstakes was successful so Philippine government decided

to conduct more draws for the benefit of the Philippine Anti-Tuberculosis
Society, now the Philippine Tuberculosis Society (PTS). The draws were
held under the auspices of an organization called the National Charity
Sweepstakes.

In 1995 during the incumbency of then Chairman Manuel L Morato, the

PCSO launched the very first On-Line lottery in the Philippines. Similar to
the successful games run in the U.S., Europe and Australia, the On-line
lottery, better known as the lotto brought a new dimension of fun and
excitement for the betting public. In this computerized gaming, initially the
Lotto 6/42, the player chooses any set of 6 numbers from 1 to 42 and wins
when these numbers are drawn in any sequence during the draw date.
The lotto was a big hit despite strong opposition from certain quarters. Its
legality was questioned but the Supreme Court ruled that the new lottery
was legal. Since then, more lottery game forms have been added such as
the three-digit (3D), the four -digit (4D), the six-digit (6D), the Mega Lotto
6/45 and the Super Lotto 6/49 draw.

Even with the successful operation of the lotto, the PCSO is taking steps to
improve the traditional Sweepstakes to make it more competitive. The sales
of Sweepstakes tickets has been automated at the point of sale, and the
entire financial system has been computerized. Not only does this ensure
better management of the game, but it likewise lengthens the ticket selling
period. Significantly, the computerization has enhanced the products
integrity and image. To complete the facelift, the Sweepstakes tickets have
come out with a new design.

In March 1998, the new Bonus Sweepstakes Doble Panalo was launched
to make the Sweepstakes more appealing to the public. The new game is a
combination of Sweepstakes and Instant Win where players can have the
chance to win twice with a purchase of just one share worth Php10.00.
Prizes include over Php3 million in the Sweepstakes and over Php550,000
prizes in the Match & Win portion.

These game enhancement are expected to yield greater revenues that will
likewise dramatically give impetus to the PCSOs avowed commitment to
support its ever-growing number of beneficiaries and programs.