Emirati diplomat receives bumper Eid gift in raffle draw
- 06 May 2022
Gulf Today, Staff Reporter
An Emirati diplomat, a South African business owner, and a Filipino nurse were united in their joy at winning Dhs77,777 each during Emirates Draw’s weekly raffle draw on the eve of Eid celebrations.
Hassan Al Suwaidi was especially surprised since he participated mere minutes before Emirates Draw closed its submissions. The junior diplomat, who is from Dubai but lives in Abu Dhabi, spent the next day alternating between disbelief and happiness before it finally felt real.
“I’m still in shock. I’ve replayed the video of the live stream at least five times and read the congratulatory email 15 times so far. I had previously won Dhs77, but I didn’t expect to win Dhs77,777, especially on the evening of Eid,” Hassan, who plans to split his winnings between paying down his debt and giving a portion to his parents, said. The 24-year-old further revealed that he had discovered he had won while preparing for Eid celebrations with his family.
“My family and friends were very excited when I told them that I had won. My mother said that I was always lucky as a child when participating in raffles and this is proof that I’ve still got it. I’ve already bought another Dhs50 pencil for next week’s draw,” Al Suwaidi added, noting that as a regular participant, he remains optimistic about his chances by taking hope from the message shared by the live show hosts each week to keep trying for a better tomorrow.
Meaza Kebere, a 31-year-old South African expatriate who runs a cosmetics business with her husband, similarly shared that her feelings of excitement have yet to diminish since discovering that she had won Dhs77,777 with Emirates Draw.
“I participate every week with my husband, and we had won Dhs777 before so when I checked my email after the draw, I saw that we had won again. I didn’t really think about it until I checked my dashboard and realised how much we had won,” Meaza said, laughing.
The 31-year-old added that she called her husband, who was out on a walk, to tell him the good news: “I kept telling him to come back home and that worried him but when I told him that I had won, he became so happy, and we haven’t stopped celebrating since.” The couple plan to use their winnings to expand their business.
Yasser Kintanar Fuentes also hasn’t stopped laughing and smiling since discovering his good fortune. The 33-year-old nurse, who had begun regularly participating three weeks ago, plans to use his Dhs77,777 winnings to help his family back home in the Philippines.
“I would randomly purchase Dhs50 pencils for the weekly draw before deciding to participate regularly. I saw the email from Emirates Draw while I was checking my messages during my early morning walk. I still can’t believe that I won because I’ve never won a raffle before…thank you Emirates Draw for this wonderful opportunity, especially since I won during the Eid holiday,” Yasser, who has lived in Dubai for over six years, said.
It's now easier than ever to win with Emirates Draw. The socially responsible organisation is giving 10% of all weekly draw participants the opportunity to win Dhs7 by matching the first number from the right in its newest prize category. This amounts to 14% of the price of the Dhs50 pencil purchase required to participate in the draw. Those that select at least one correct number will then join the over 17,000 winners who have been positively impacted by the over Dhs24 million in prize money distributed by Emirates Draw since its inception in September 2021.
The unique structure of Emirates Draw distinguishes it from other draws in that the grand prize remains at Dhs100 million until a single person or a group of people match all seven numbers at which point the grand prize resets to Dhs77,777,77. It is the largest Grand Prize in UAE history and till now remains available, giving optimistic participants another chance to try for the life-changing amount; the next round will be broadcast live on Sunday, May 8th, 2022, at 9pm UAE time.