No Mascom wheels or cash promotion
Pauline Dikuelo | Monday March 16, 2015 15:54
“Over the years, we enjoyed a lot of support from our subscriber base and the promotion has also given us great opportunity to interact with our customers as well as give back to them,” stated Mascom public relations officer, Thato Moruti recently.
Moruti added that the last time they held the promotion was in 2013 explaining that it usually ran for 10 to 15 weeks, where they held weekly draws for the winners.
“In the 2013 edition of Mascom Wheels Or Cash, there were three winners who walked away with brand new Ford Rangers and 12 who won cash prizes. All our promotion winners received all their prizes in public in the presence of reputable auditors,” he said, adding that the coverage was also shared both in print advertorial as well as in a television lifestyle magazine show, Primetime.
However, some members of the public expressed disappointment with Mascom for making this decision noting that it was a great initiative. They said that the promotion could alleviate poverty by just sending messages through the phone.
“I am totally not happy with the decision Mascom took. They might have their reasons, but I was still hopeful that one of these days I will win that Ford Ranger, sell it and use the money to start a business and use the rest to extend my two-bedroomed house,” explained Ntsako Mashele.
For Vinolia Sesigo, a third-year University of Botswana student, this competition was a great initiative even though she used most of her savings on airtime with the hope that she would win.
“I cannot believe the promotion is no more. I was looking forward for it this year, as there has been a prophecy at my church that I am going to win something big through the promotions. Maybe, I should now buy an Orange sim-card and try my luck there,” Kholisane Panama said.Another Mascom subscriber, who has participated in the promotion for the past three years, differed with other customers. He said that it is a bold decision for Mascom, as he was having doubts about the transparency of the promotion.“I do not even care about it. I spent lots of money on that promotion and never won. Imagine taking half of your salary to buy airtime for the promotion, while starving yourself. At the end of the day you hear that someone who just sent a few messages emerged the winner,” said Maseko Ndwapi, who works as a security guard.