Pagsugpo sa ‘loteng’, asam ng PCSO

KINATIGAN ni Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) General Manager Alexander Balutan ang isinusulong na House Bill 5026 na naglalayong sugpuin ang lahat na uri ng ilegal na ‘number games’ sa bansa.

Itinutulak ni Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez, ang House Bill No. 5026 ay nagdedeklara sa “Philippine lotto” at Small Town Lottery (STL) ng PCSO bilang tanging ‘number game’ na kinikilala ng pamahalaan.

“If the bill turns into law, it will be a big boost against our fight against all illegal numbers games such as jueteng, masiao, last two-digits, and the likes,” pahayag ni Balutan.

“Jueteng and other illegal numbers games are sources of funds that politicians use to buy votes and money for their campaign sorties and they are using dummies to operate this kind of illegal number games,” ayon kay Balutan.

“Let us support STL and stop illegal numbers games that are affecting PCSO’s legal and charitable games,” aniya.

Inamin ni Balutan na nakatali ang kanilang mga kamay para sugpuin ang monopolyo ng ‘illegal number games’sa Central Luzon, Southern Luzon provinces, kabilang ang Bicol; habang ang masiao at last two-digit games ay tinatangkilik sa Visayas at Mindanao regions dahil na rin sa kakulangan sa batas para ito masupil.

“Nationalizing the STL alone will generate around 800,000 jobs nationwide. This will benefit people who may be under-qualified in other jobs due to educational attainment, health conditions, or previous record of drug use,” pahayag ni Suarez.