Abdul Salam Muhammad Ashraf says he did not spend a single dirham on himself.
Most people handed Dh100,000 out of nowhere would think about a holiday. Maybe a car. Abdul Salam Muhammad Ashraf did none of that.
The 55-year-old Pakistani expat works as a limousine chauffeur in Abu Dhabi and comes originally from Sahiwal in Pakistan. He won the Dh100,000 Lucky Chance prize in one of the UAE Lottery’s Lucky Day Draws in November 2025. Nine months on, he has spoken about where the money went, and the list is entirely other people.
It covered his son’s wedding celebrations. It paid for a medical surgery he needed. It helped his daughter towards buying a car back in Pakistan. A portion went to charity. According to Gulf News, he said he had not bought anything for himself and wanted the prize to support his family instead.
Nine months after winning AED 100,000, Abdul Salam reflects on the moments that mattered most. The prize helped him celebrate his son’s wedding, prioritize his health with a successful surgery, and continue supporting his family.
Some stories leave a lasting impact, and his is… pic.twitter.com/cheKIAYa6o
— The UAE Lottery (@theuaelottery) August 3, 2026The order he describes tells you how he thought about it. His son’s wedding came first, a family occasion he said went well. His surgery followed, and by his account it was successful. Supporting the people closest to him came alongside both.
For anyone living away from home and sending money back, that list will feel familiar. A wedding at home, a medical bill, a sibling or parent who needs help with something big. These commitments sit underneath most expat working lives in the Gulf, and they rarely arrive one at a time. A sum like Dh100,000 does not change a life so much as it clears a backlog.
Ashraf has been working in the UAE since 2005, close to two decades by the time the win came. He first heard about the UAE Lottery on a morning radio show and bought tickets for roughly a year before his number came up. He has framed the win as arriving after twenty years of effort rather than as luck landing on a stranger, and said he hopes others can win too.
The UAE Lottery is the country’s officially licensed operator, running draws, scratch cards, and instant games. Its Lucky Day draw includes a main jackpot alongside separate Lucky Chance prizes of Dh100,000, which is the category Ashraf won in. Expat winners have featured regularly since the operator launched.
Ashraf remains in his job in Abu Dhabi. His son is married, his surgery is behind him, and his daughter is closer to her car. The Dh100,000 is spent, and by his own account, none of it on him.
