A 60-year-old retired school teacher of Banaras Lautoka seems to have luck on his side.

Sitiveni Tunaka texted only eight times towards the Vodafone 2017 Vodafone Festival of the Friendly North promotion and yesterday he drove away with an Isuzu DMAX worth $70,000.

“I only texted eight times and this is just like a dream come true and I’m thankful that God answered my prayer,” he said.

“I received two calls from Vodafone last week but my phone went off, it was during their third call that they told me of my win and for me to come to Suva today.”

Mr Tunaka already owns four cars. So for now, he plans to use the vehicle and sell it next year for $60,000.

“My family back in Lautoka are not aware of this.”

Liaison officer for the Friendly North Committee Ramesh Chand and Vodafone’s Sponsorship manager Adriu Vakarau presented Mr Tunaka the vehicle at the Carpenters Motors showroom in Walu Bay, Suva.

Mr Chand acknowledged Vodafone’s partnership of over 10 years in the many projects for the people of the Friendly North.

“We look forward to many successful projects through the support from our partners, Vodafone,” he added.

Mr Vakarau said: “We have signed a five year contract to support the festival achieve further heights and extend our community engagement to make a difference in people’s lives.”

Edited by Mohammed Zulfikar