UAE | General

Victor basks in win after seven-year itch

Luck favoured him after a number of attempts that started seven years ago.

  • By Binsal Abdul Kader, Staff Reporter
  • Published: 01:22 February 22, 2008
  • Gulf News

Dubai: Luck favoured him after a number of attempts that started seven years ago.

The first Filipino to win Dh1 million in the Abu Dhabi Duty Free Raffle draw said he has been trying his luck with the raffle since 2001 when he joined the Abu Dhabi Airport Company as a senior technician.

"It was a collective effort with a group of colleagues so the loss on 'unlucky tickets' was not a big deal," said Victor Cabote Arogar, 34, who reached the UAE in 1998.

Big ticket

Arogar is happy and celebrated the windfall though he has to share the prize with seven others - his sister and six colleagues, including three compatriots and three Indians.

As the first Filipino to win the big ticket of Abu Dhabi Duty Free Raffle he has become popular among his compatriots in the city.

The prize is a comfort when he thinks how he struggled earlier in life due to financial problems.

"There were situations I was in dire need of money and did not find a source to solve the problem," said Arogar, who has a degree in electrical engineering from Philippines and worked with a water distillery company before coming to the UAE.

The money will allow him to bring his family to Abu Dhabi soon. "Although I am getting a decent salary, I did not bring my family because of increasing living costs."

He will continue his job he said and set aside part of the money for his daughter's education, the rest he might invest in a business venture, but he has not decided yet.

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