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Saquina Jaramillo, general manager of the National Charity Lottery (LNB), reported discrepancies in the distribution of lottery books, including the presence of “ghost books” and uncashed checks; therefore, Panama is looking at a new scandal in its lottery scheme. In answer to such claims, lottery agents (book ticket sellers) have asked for a full investigation to set the record straight and free the system of any possibility of corruption.
Complaints and Reactions
Jaramillo told the Economy and Finance Committee of the National Assembly that the Public Ministry is investigating 294 lottery books in several parts of the country, including Chiriquí, Los Pueblos, Veraguas, and San Miguelito, for potential irregularities. She also discussed 500,000 outstanding checks and supposed ghost books, which are papers that could be used to steal money.
Presentations like these have met with apprehensive opposition from the union leaders and ticket sellers. From the Ticket Sellers’ Union, Alfredo Sosa said that a full audit is required to ascertain the status of these checks and passbooks.
Sosa said, “As ticket sellers, we must know what is going on with phantom passbooks.”
Guillermo Valdés Lagarto, head of the ticket sellers at El Dorado, endorsed Jaramillo’s approach as a “clean-up” operation in the LNB. He did not stop there, though; he wanted passbooks assigned to minors done away with and said that some deputies and representatives were supposedly tied up with their illegal handling.
The “Ghost Notebooks”
The phrase “ghost passbooks” refers to lottery passbooks that do not belong to legitimate vendors but which still generate revenues that may be redirected. Legitimate ticket vendors, whose livelihood depends on lottery revenue, suffer directly from these types of anomalies.
Moreover, the presence of uncashed checks implies a lack of authorized sellers receiving money, therefore pointing to corruption or theft within the organization.
The Search for Openness and Equity
Lottery vendors have said an inquiry must be conducted on top of LNB officials against leaders and patrons who could be profiting from this unauthorized scheme. Some tickets, including those handled by parliament members, are, according to their claims, roadblocked by influential individuals, therefore impeding fair access to this avenue of employment for normal vendors.
The condition has led to calls for officials to:
- Carry out an independent review to establish the extent of the anomalies.
- Delete from the ticket registry any entries that do not match actual vendors.
- Punish officials and legislators implicated as well as responsible parties.
The Public Ministry is already well along in its inquiries, particularly in Chiriquí and Veraguas, where the claims are supposedly more advanced. Next in the investigation? Ticket vendors, however, want the system to change to guarantee openness; they hope the process will not be limited to basic gripes.
Notwithstanding pressure from several quarters that the inquiry might influence the director of the National Lottery (LNB) has repeated her support for institutional hygiene.
The Panama National Lottery of Charity’s phantom lottery books and uncashed checks case reveals a more fundamental issue in the management of lotteries, that is, corruption and uncontrolled distribution. Most affected parties, ticket vendors, want definite responses and strong measures to keep these funds meant for charity from landing in the wrong hands.
Panamanian society expects the authorities to act fairly and openly, therefore guaranteeing that lottery funds serve their intended goal: supporting the most needy ones.
Source: YogoNet
