A recent video trending on social media here shows the notary public Ramon Andres Avila retrieving a number from the revolving drum and putting it back to take out another one. The lottery company is La Primera and the video with the exchange of numbers went viral on Wednesday, 9 February. The notary proceeded with the certification of the raffle. He continued to draw the remaining winning numbers until the raffle was completed.
Last year, the authorities arrested the former administrator of the National Lottery, Luis Maisichell Dicent, suspect of complicity in a fraud in which a similar revolving drum and number selection was involved.
The video coincided with the announcement on Wednesday, 9 February 2022, of Decree 63-22, in which President Luis Abinader orders that betting shops that are irregularly operating be regulated. The Ministry of Hacienda is responsible for drafting or proposing the new norms for the proposed regularization plan. A consulting board is created to follow up the plan. The members are the Ministry of Hacienda, Tax Agency (DGII), the National Federation of Lottery Shops (Fenabanca), betting shop operators, the administrator of the National Lottery and two members of the consulting board of the National Lottery. The director of the National Lottery is the coordinator of the new board.
Betting shops in the Dominican Republic have a lax regulation and tax regime and are found everywhere. Nevertheless, in the reasons for the Decree 63-22, the Presidency says the new guidelines are issued because the sector is an important source of taxes for the government. Several legislators of different political parties are known to be owners or related to the major gaming operations.
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Presidency
Acento
14 February 2022