27th October, 2010
The Lagos State Pools Agents Association, LASPAA, has again warned on the illegality of commission which operators of pools business are giving to the staking public.
The President of the association, Major Sammy Ogunyebo (retd.) said the flagrant abuse of the edicts on pools should be looked into by the Lagos State government, adding that commissions which independent agents and promoters’ betting shops are giving to stakers are illegal and should be stopped now.
“The law says no rebate or commission should be given to stakers, but what we have in the business today is that every shop wants to attract customers with commission. In lotto, where agents submit coupon three times a day to their promoters, there is no commission to stakers, but in pools business where agents submit coupon once in a week to their promoters, commission to stakers have been used to paralyse the market. This has to stop now,†warned Major Ogunyebo.
The retired Army officer, who leads over 20,000 agents in Lagos State told P.M.NEWS that the issue of commission to stakers is one of the pertinent issues the association raised in its proposal to Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola. He revealed that the state government is seriously studying the proposal that will guide it to find a lasting solution to the problems of the pools business in Lagos.
“I have been having series of meetings with top officials of the state government and I’m glad that these meetings are yielding positive response and attention. Very soon the government will come out with solution to our problem, which include commission to stakers and the odds payment,†he said.
Sammy said that one of the problems of pools in Lagos is the proliferation of pools promoters, which he said is causing unhealthy rivalry and competition.
“The promoters operating in Lagos are too many and the only way to stop this unhealthy competition is to reduce their number through high tax and upward review of their annual licence fee. This will not only force some of them to stop promoting coupons, it will also help government generate more revenue. I think 10 promoters in Lagos will be enough for the business,†said the LASPAA boss.
