MANILA, Philippines -- Call it providential or pure luck, but a 49-year-old government worker of General Santos City made it a "panata" (vow) every time he placed a bet on the lotteries of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) to donate a substantial amount to his church if he wins. And won he did on July 26, grabbing Super Lotto 6/49's P106,844,122.80 jackpot.

This seems to jibe perfectly with what PCSO General Manager Jose Ferdinand Rojas II has been telling lotto winners: "Thank God for your good fortune."

In what appears to be an unwritten rule among PCSO officials such as Rojas, they do not intrude into what lotto winners plan with their money.

The most that some State charity agency officials do is to suggest that jackpot winners always thank the Lord, spend wisely and make your life better, and save for the rainy day.

Interviewed by the Manila Bulletin, Internal Audit Department (PCSO-IAD) Manager Lauro A. Patiag related that that was exactly what the married male winner from General Santos City told him.

"When I interviewed him in my office on Monday the Super Lotto winner told me his first act will be to fulfill his 'panata' to donate to his church a substantial sum out of his prize," said the PCSO-IAD official.

"That really struck me because many of the jackpot winners I have interviewed for their profiles mentioned their families and relatives and then about thanking God and helping a church. Some don't mention it at all. Anyway, it's a personal thing," said Patiag.

The PCSO-IAD head said the winner placed a P20 single Lucky Pick bet a the KCC Mall in General Santos City on July 26 and hit the winning combination of 39-42-38-07-10-12.

Patiag said it was a Thursday when he placed his bet but learned only Saturday that he won when he went to KCC Mall and saw a large tarpaulin at the lotto outlet bragging about selling the ticket for the 6/49 draw for the P106.88 million windfall.

"So he called his wife and asked her to dictate the numbers he bet on. When it matched the drawn numbers he was shaken and felt nervous, but kept it to himself," said Patiag.

He also told that sometimes he bought lotto tickets only twice a week because he had no money to spare.

"Our General Santos City winner came to Manila with a son and asked a cousin in Manila to accompany them to the PCSO in Pasay City," said Patiag.

In 30 minutes more or less the PCSO treasurer's office finished the check for the winner. Patiag presented it to him in closed doors.

The lucky punter told the PCSO official he will give a huge sum to his church to fulfill his vow, buy house and lot for they have none, help relatives, and save the other amount in the bank.