Dh7m UAE lottery winner to sponsor kidney transplant

Mayyala thought it was a scam when he got the call from the Big Ticket Office.

The Dh7 million Big Ticket win of an Indian expat in Abu Dhabi has turned out to be a life-safer for a kidney patient in Kerala. 
Winner Mohmmed Kunhi Mayyala, who is from Kerala, said the first thing he is going to do with the money is to pay for the kidney transplantation of his close relative. 
"He is like my own brother. Both his kidneys are dysfunctional, and he has been struggling with weekly dialysis for many years now. I cannot express in words  how happy I am that I can now bear the expenses for his surgery and other required medical care," Mayyala, 42, told Khaleej Times.
He said his relative who was also working in Abu Dhabi till two years ago went back to India due to his medical condition. 
A salesman at a garment shop in Bani Yas in Abu Dhabi, Mayyala has been working in the UAE for the last 15 years. He is married and with two sons, aged six and two. The family resides in Kerala.
His ticket number 121013 won the Big  Ticket bumper raffle prize on Wednesday.
Like many other winners, Mayyala also thought it was a scam when he got the call from the Big Ticket Office. 
"A few weeks ago I had got a call from scamsters saying I won a jackpot in an Etisalat raffle draw. I thought this call is also fake. Only after checking the website, I could believe them,"  said Mayyala.
"It is a big change in my life. Now because of Big Ticket, I can build a house and start my own business." 
However, helping the needy is going to be his first preference, Mayyala said. 
"There are many people who are suffering from cancer and other severe illness, which needs expensive medical care. Because I have seen my brother suffer from Kidney failure, I want to help them as much as possible."
The man said he will also  use part of his jackpot to help the Kerala flood victims. "I had already contributed whatever I could to the Chief Minister's fund for reconstruction of the state. I am planning to do more." 
When asked about what he would do for his wife and children, the winner said he is yet to break the news to his wife. "I did not want to shock her. I am busy working today, and so is she. I will perhaps call her in the evening." 
"I am yet to decide whether to tell my kids. I don't want them to grow up thinking that their father is flushed with cash. It is better they grow up knowing the value of money and the importance of helping fellow human beings with whatever little they have," said Mayyala. 

• Abu Dhabi