When Kennedy Boakye heard his phone ring that morning at his cement shop in Nkoranza in the Bono East Region, the 46-year-old was busy helping load bags of cement into a customer’s tricycle.

The Telecel official on the call announced to Kennedy that he had won GH¢20,000 in the Telecel M’ahitti Promo. He immediately hung up. When the same Telecel official called again, Kennedy began interrogating them: “Why him? How had he won? Why were they calling him about winning?” The explanations did little to convince him.

Frustrated and overwhelmed, Kennedy handed the phone to his wife, who asked more probing questions and tried to establish whether the news was genuine. It was his wife who gave him hope that it could be real.

Arriving at Techiman for the prize presentation ceremony was the tipping point for the father of four. Kennedy, who has used his Telecel number for over a decade to make local and international calls, received the cash prize in his Telecel Cash wallet on the spot and encouraged others to bury their doubts and participate in the Telecel M’ahitti Promo.

“I own a cement shop, so I plan to invest some of the cash in my business, health and family’s development,” Kenney said.

“I encourage all to join the ongoing promo, and God can make you win. Use Telecel because it's the best, and I can assure you of that.”

So far, Kennedy is one of 17 weekly winners in the ongoing Telecel M’ahitti promo, a four-month campaign offering more than GH¢5.1 million in cash prizes.

As of Wednesday, 26^th August, a total of 2,842 customers had won GH¢100 each in the daily draws, and 17 lucky customers have won GH¢20,000 each in the weekly draws.

As one of the largest consumer reward campaigns in Ghana’s telecom sector, the Telecel M’ahitti Promo will reward 12,000 customers daily with GH¢100 each, 48 customers weekly with GH¢20,000 each, and three grand prize winners monthly with GH¢1 million each.

Supervised by the National Lottery Authority – Caritas, all Telecel customers can participate for free by dialling *500#, texting WIN to 500, or activating the promotion through the Telecel Play App.

Airtime recharges, bundle purchases and Telecel Cash deposits of GH¢10 or more earn points, with bonus entries for customers who use the Telecel Play App and Telecel Cash.

Kennedy is not alone in discovering that the biggest obstacle to a big win can sometimes be believing it has happened.

About 260km away in the northern region, 24-year-old Abdul-Jalil Dokurugu had an equally unlikely route to his GH¢20,000 weekly win.

Jalil works with his uncle in a smock shop at Tamale’s Central Market. One evening after closing the shop, he was trying to buy data when he noticed the Telecel M’ahitti option after dialling *110# to purchase a bundle. He selected it almost casually, without any intention.

“I randomly selected option 8 and opted into the promo just because I wanted to know what it does,” he said. He continued to use Telecel Cash for deposits and to buy data.

When the winning call came, Jalil did not believe it. He initially ignored the subsequent calls from the Telecel office, thinking it was part of a scam. But the calls kept coming, with the explanation that he had won GH¢20,000 and the regional team would contact him.

Still suspicious, he remained unbothered until the telco’s Tamale office called and handed the phone to a Dagbani speaker who explained the win to him in his native language. He was then asked to come to the Tamale office with his uncle.

“When I got to the Telecel Tamale office, I saw that it was real. Is this a dream?” Jalil asked. For someone who completed senior high school in 2022 and is still finding his feet, he plans to invest the money in the family smock business and expand it.

The stories of Kennedy and Jalil are part of the broader national spread of the Telecel M’ahitti Promo, which is designed to give customers across Ghana's 16 regions an opportunity to win in the daily, weekly and monthly draws.

Other weekly winners have emerged from Kumasi, Sowutuom, Sefwi Anwhiaso, Obuasi, Koforidua, Teshie-Nungua and Sunyani, among others.

With the Telecel M’ahitti Promo now in its third week, there are lots of chances to participate and win in the daily, weekly and monthly draws.

Telecel Ghana has repeatedly warned customers that winners will never be asked to pay a fee, surrender their Telecel Cash PIN or make a payment to claim a prize.