The decision to increase special lottery draws to 22 times a year was a collective one by the previous government, which included PAS ministers at the time, says former finance minister Tengku Zafrul Aziz.
Tengku Zafrul, who is now the prime minister’s senior political adviser, said special draws date back to 1999 and that a 22-draw annual ceiling had already existed under Barisan Nasional before he became finance minister.
“During the pandemic (Covid-19), the government at that time returned to that existing ceiling (22 times), and this matter was also informed to Parliament through an official reply.
“More importantly, under today’s Madani government, the special draws have been reduced to just eight times a year,” he was quoted as saying.
Response to personal responsibility claims
Tengku Zafrul was responding to a claim that he was personally responsible for the decision to increase the number of special draws.
Kelantan PAS Youth chief Firdaus Nawi reportedly said PAS had opposed the increase and Tengku Zafrul was the one who approved it.
Court ruling and state positions
The issue of special lottery draws resurfaced after the Federal Court dismissed the Kedah government’s bid to overturn a ruling that barred it from refusing to renew licences for pool betting and lottery operators.
Kedah menteri besar Sanusi Nor said the decision on whether gambling activities would be allowed in Kedah now rested with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.
He also warned that the Kedah people would “curse” Anwar if gambling activities were allowed to resume in the state.
Anwar has since centred the argument on the fact that the number of special draws was cut back to eight from 22 after he took office.
The number of special draws was 11 in 2019 before the Pakatan Harapan government reduced it to eight in 2020.
