Pastor wins RM1m in BSN special draw

KUCHING: A Sarawakian pastor has won RM1 million in the Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) Premium Savings Certificate (SSP) special draw.

Jonathan Labo, 62, from Lawas striking the jackpot was indeed something he did not expect.

He said although he opened his BSN bank account back in 2019, he had only invested RM10,000 in the SSP in April this year.

Therefore, being a winner just after three months of investing is such a stroke of luck, he said.

“I only knew about my winning on July 7 because living in the rural area, I hardly have a cell phone signal unless I travel out to town – which is approximately a three and a half hour drive from my village.

Jonatan Lobo, 62, from Ulu Trusan Region, Lawas became the 101st BSN millionaire celebrating joy with his wife Sinang Kuyad, 65, in Kuching last night. Photo: Ghazali Bujang

“I have to admit that when I received the phone call, I was skeptical as there are a lot of scams happening nowadays. But after meeting the bank officer in BSN Lawas branch on July 9, it was truly overwhelming,” he said to the media at a hotel today.

As the money is like a gift from God, the father of six said he will be giving 10 per cent of his winnings to the Borneo Evangelical Mission (BEM) Church in Miri.

“Other than that, I still have no plans on how to spend the money except for putting it in savings, investing in a business that my friend and I established, and distributing some of the money to my family,” he said.

Aside from Jonathan, Peter Ngumbang Guyu from Sarawak was also announced as the winner in the BSN SSP Regional Draw, bringing home Perodua Myvi 1.5.

Sharing his excitement, the 60-years-old retired firefighter from Betong said to this day, he still could not believe he was chosen out of millions of Malaysians nationwide.

Like Jonathan, he admitted that he too was skeptical of his winning and thought it was a scam call.

“They called me three times that day but I did not answer the calls until they sent me a message to call them back.

“So I did and confirmed for myself the winning when I walked to BSN Satok branch with my wife,” he said.

He said that his winning was due to his consistency in investing in the BSN SSP after he retired.

“As my birthday falls in September, this is somewhat an early birthday present for me. Among all, the most excited was my disabled child who who could not wait to ride in the new car,” he said.

BSN SSP is a mandated product of BSN where customers can participate in the draw and stand a chance to win attractive prizes.