China lottery results delay sparks agency integrity concerns

A two-hour delay in the airing of the results of China's welfare lottery on Sunday ignited discussions on the integrity of the agency which runs it.

The agency explained that it was caused by technical problems from the Chongqing lottery sales system which resulted in sales data transmission failure.

Agency head Tang Qiwei said that the sales data from all provinces must be confirmed before the draw can begin.

The results, aired live every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday, were supposed to be broadcast by the welfare lottery agency on China Education Television Sunday at 9:30 pm, but was suspended without explanation until 9:54 pm, when the agency issued a statement on its official Weibo account saying the suspension was caused by "sales data transmission failure."

The lottery results were finally announced around 11:40 pm on Weibo while the winners and the video of the draw were made available on Monday. The Ministry of Civil Affairs and the agency in charge of China's welfare lottery have apologized on Monday.

Many netizens, however, were unsatisfied with the explanation and questioned the results. Some also called for greater transparency of the lottery businesses.

The Party's discipline inspection commission confirmed Monday that they have received complaints against the agency, The Beijing News reported.

A commentary published on the mobile app of the People's Daily said the public has lost faith in the lottery in recent years over fraud incidents and the lack of transparency.

The commentary urged the lottery management agency to take the public comments seriously and be more transparent in its operations.

The China Welfare Lottery Management Center said that it grossed over 28 billion yuan in the first half of 2014 and half of the earnings was spent on charity work.