Cool it with the payout, Lotto

Let us first dispel the myth that the Lotto draw is there to make ordinary citizens extraordinarily rich.

The major function is to use the collective contributions – after the organisers have taken their share – to help enrich the lives of all South Africans across a broad spectrum encompassing areas such as sport, the arts, legal aid and special needs education.

But the fly in this philanthropic ointment is the 12-month “cooling off period” – a process which in reality could take up to 12 months to reinstate payment – between one grant and the next under the National Lotteries Commission’s regulation 14.

The SA National Sport and Olympic Confederation and Olympic Committee, which rejoices under the quaint acronym Sascoc, has already warned that international competition could be severely compromised, and the annual National Arts Festival in Grahamstown, an institution spanning more than four decades, will only happen this year through a bailout by the Eastern Cape provincial government.

The arts festival adds R377 million to the GDP of the province and R97 million in revenue to the host city, according to impact studies.

The Lotteries Board admits it is reviewing regulation 14, but the crucial question is why they drew it up in the first place.