WHY ONLY POOR PEOPLE WIN LOTTERY JACKPOTS IN KENYA
By now you must have noticed that a majority of those ‘lucky winners’ in major, jaw-dropping jackpots in lotteries are from humble backgrounds. Samuel Abisai, winner of the SportPesa Sh221 million worked with a Chinese firm and lived in Nairobi’s Roysambu area off the Thika Superhighway. But if lottery is a game of chance, then anyone from any socio-economic background should stand a chance of winning. So, how come there are never jackpot winners from upscale areas such as Karen,Lavington, Runda, Kitisuru or Muthaiga?! Social scientists agree that there is an inverse relationship between socio-economic status and betting. Low-income earners spend a larger share of their incomes on lottery tickets than those with higher incomes. Demand for lottery tickets correlates not only with the level of income, but also with a general lower socio-economic status as measured by low education level, employment status and minority status of one’s ethnic community. Although it is well establi