The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, or PCSO, belied claims that it requires aspiring owners of lotto outlets to put up a cash bond of P500,000.
Erik Imson, PCSO's market specialist for the product development division, said the government agency only requires entrepreneurial Filipinos to have a capital of P30,000 before putting up a lotto outlet.
"Don't believe people who are saying you need a cash bond. With a relatively small amount of money, you can already have a lotto business," Imson said Thursday on Daily Tribune's 3rd Asian Innovation Forum in Barangay Sucat, Parañaque City.
By purchasing lotto tickets and game cards, Imson said Filipinos can help others who are seriously sick but cannot afford medical services. The public can purchase a lotto ticket for P20 and a game card for P10.
The PCSO recently saw record-high ticket sales amounting to P87.6 million daily over two weeks from November 1 to 14. This resulted in total sales of P1.23 billion during the period.
Forty percent of the PSCO charity fund is allocated to health programs of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation or PhilHealth as required by the Universal Health Care Law.
"It is better to help than be the one being helped," Imson said.
PCSO reported a P2.7-billion contribution to the UHC from October 2019 to December last year.
Imson said Filipinos can also sell PCSO game cards to earn a profit of P200 per set of cards.