Mr Adolphus Ekpe, the Director-General, National Lottery Regulatory Commission (NLRC) on Monday said the Christian Pilgrimage Lottery Scheme would commence in September.

Ekpe said this in Abuja while playing host to the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Christian Pilgrim Commission (NCPC), Mr John Kennedy Opara at the NLRC headquarters.

The DG said that it was time Nigeria benefited from the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) earlier signed by the two commissions.

He said that the selection of the lottery operator would be based on integrity, financial capability and transparency.

“The media should continue to help in educating Nigerians on lottery issues because the nation has a lot to gain when lottery is played the right way,” Ekpe said.

Earlier, Opara commended the NLRC Director-General on his efforts in projecting the lottery industry and the zeal to ensure that the industry grows from strength to strength.

He expressed delight at the level of cordial relationship existing between the two agencies.

“I have confidence in the capability of the NLRC in setting the roadmap for the effective execution of the MOU resulting in the Christian pilgrimage lottery scheme,” Opara said