DUBAI: When Raja Wajahat was about to cut his birthday cake in Dubai, a relative called him to share the news that changed his life: a 1 million dirham ($272,000) win in a UAE lucky draw.
A former account manager at a logistics company in Dubai, Wajahat lost his job two months earlier and was desperately looking for work until the Aug. 28 win in the weekly Mahzooz lottery.
“I was partying with my friends, and I kept disconnecting a call I had been receiving from a relative but when he didn’t stop calling, I answered and he said five out of the six numbers of a ticket we had bought together had matched,” the 31-year-old told Arab News on Saturday.
Raja Wajahat, a Pakistani expat in the United Arab Emirates, won 1 million dirhams ($272,000) in a Dubai-based lucky draw on August 28, 2021. (Photo courtesy: Social media)
With the five lucky numbers, Mahzooz announced him the 14th millionaire of its 40th weekly draw, in which he has been participating for the past two years.
“I participate in Mahzooz every week and never miss the live draw,” Wajahat said. “I got goosebumps when I saw the winning numbers on the screen,” Wajahat said. “I cross checked them with my numbers, but I couldn’t believe my eyes.”
This was his first ever lotto win.
“You never know when fortune is going to smile at you,” Wajahat said, as he has already received the money and spilt it with the relative with whom he had bought the ticket
He said he is planning to build a house in Islamabad and open a supermarket in his hometown Bagh in Azad Kashmir.
“Much of them money will go there,” he said, adding that the remaining amount will help him set up a restaurant in Dubai, where he has been living for the past seven years.
“I was anxious about my future and desperately searching for a job,” he said. “But look at me now. I turned into a fortunate man in a matter of minutes.”
