“Poor Guy”: Ithuba Searches for R2.28m PowerBall Winner With Expiring Ticket, SA Divided

• The National Lottery operator, Ithuba, has issued an urgent public appeal on X, actively searching for the winner of the over R2 million PowerBall Plus jackpot
• The news, shared on Ithuba's X account, detailed where the winning ticket was bought and noted that it must be claimed before the expiration date, which is soon
• The post drew a mixed reaction, with many viewers expressing strong scepticism about the authenticity of the win, while others felt sorry for the unclaimed prize

The National Lottery operator, Ithuba, has ignited a fresh round of public debate after announcing that a massive PowerBall Plus jackpot remains unclaimed and that it will expire soon.

The news shared on Ithuba's X account @sa_lottery urged citizens to check their tickets, but social media users were in doubt about the winnings.

Ithuba, the proud operator of the National Lottery, announced that they were on a search for the PowerBall Plus jackpot winner who won a substantial sum of R2,284,810 on 12 November 2024. The urgency of the announcement lies in the fact that the winning ticket is due to expire exactly one year later, on 12 November 2025.

The unclaimed jackpot

The operator further specified that the winning ticket was purchased at Mayfield Square, Johannesburg, Gauteng. Ithuba's public plea, urging people to check their tickets, highlights the possibility that the winner may have misplaced the ticket or is simply unaware of their fortune. The jackpot could easily slip back into the lottery's coffers if the deadline is missed.

SA reacts with scepticism and sympathy

The announcement garnered mixed reactions from social media users. Many expressed scepticism, saying they doubted the winnings, suggesting that Mzansi was full of 'ghost employees' and 'ghost winners,' and jokingly linking the lottery to alleged government corruption. This public distrust reflected a common online sentiment about the authenticity of large, unclaimed jackpots.

Others, however, defended the post's validity. They said that Ithuba's accuracy in naming the location, Mayfield Square, a small shopping complex in Daveyton, suggests the ticket is indeed real. These viewers felt deep sympathy for the missing winner, believing they had likely lost the winning ticket and would forfeit the massive fortune.

User @musa_mansa said:

"Poor guy probably lost his ticket."

User @Moshe5767 added:

"There's probably no such ticket."

User @msiyanda01 added:

"There are ghost employees and ghost winners, lotto and government, same what's up group."

User @iiiamTheo commented:

"They don't fabricate the location, though. Mayfield is in Daveyton, it's a small Shopping complex, so such accuracy would tell you the ticket exists."

See the X post below:

3 Briefly News articles about the Lottery

• A man who won a staggering R11 million in the Lotto Plus 1 draw, with a ticket purchased for less than R100, shared his plans for his winnings.
• A family man became an instant millionaire after matching numbers that scored him the R77 million PowerBall jackpot, playing via the Nedbank banking app.
• A lucky South African lotto player struck gold in the 3 October 2024 lottery draw, winning R104 million via quick pick

Source: Briefly News