A farmer from Aopo, Savai’i is the grand prize winner of a Digicel Samoa promotion that saw him walk away with a brand new $130,000 Toyota Land Cruiser.

Manuoletogo Mose Leui, 57, lives together with his wife and four children and relies on his plantation to make a living for his family.

One of his sons currently works as a seasonal worker in New Zealand and is the one that Mose has credited for the prize, as he always sends his father phone credits through the Digicel online payment system.

“My son working as a seasonal worker in New Zealand sends Digicel top ups to my phone every week so I believe he’s the reason why our family is blessed with our first car,” he said.

In a draw held on Tuesday witnessed by a Gambling Control Authority representative and the Digicel Samoa marketing team, Mose’s name was picked in a process that was livestream through Digicel Samoa’s official Facebook page.

Digicel Samoa Chairman Pepe Christian Fruean and company employees surprised Mose in his front yard on Thursday when they delivered the brand new Toyota Land Cruiser, which had a giant ribbon and balloons wrapped around it. 

The impromptu presentation on the Savai’i farmer’s back yard, which was livestream on Facebook and shocked the prize recipient, has gone viral on social media. 

Sitting in Mose’s home, Pepe thanked him for being a Digicel customer and said his 400 upward points enabled him to become the winner of the draw. 

The farmer’s purchase of a Digicel $13 Chehoo bundle a fortnight before the draw – courtesy of his son who tops up his father’s mobile number on a weekly basis – enabled him to collect triple points to total 420 points, and consequently getting drawn from thousands of entries. 

In an interview with the Samoa Observer, Mose said he was shocked because he didn’t expect to win a brand new $130,000 truck.

“I always borrow my siblings’ cars when I need to go to the plantation and for family needs,” he said.  

“My son sent money last year to buy a car as a father’s day gift but the money was being used by the engineer and I couldn’t get one.

“I forgave him and continued to use my siblings’ cars but with what happened today I first thank God for blessing my family with one and also the great Digicel Company.

“The car will be a big help to my family to travel places and also to my village and church.”

Unaware that he had won the grand prize, Mose said a Digicel employee called him to advise that he had won $200 tala cash from the promotion. 

“An employee of Digicel called me saying that I won a cash prize of $200, I thanked them not knowing that I am the winner of the Toyota Land Cruiser draw,” he said.