Bishop predicts return of jueteng by Nov. 15

Illegal lottery operations will resume by Nov. 15 once the state-run Small-Town Lottery (STL) and "Pick 2" games are launched across the country, Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said yesterday.

Cruz claimed the launching of the STL reveals the failure of the government to eradicate jueteng, which is the primary reason why it has pushed what he called a "legal replacement."

"Now it is interfaced legalized and illegal gambling. They may be different in form but all have the same common vicious denominators: they fool and exploit the poor, enrich the gambling financiers, and corrupt governance," Cruz said.

After President Arroyo ordered a crackdown on the illegal numbers game, the government came up with the idea of competing with jueteng through the STL.

Cruz claimed the STL would cause the same problems with the only advantage being it is a legal form of gambling.

Another scheme, the "Pick-2," is also a form of illegal gambling, Cruz pointed out, since the results are based on the results of Lotto.

Cruz, the chairman of the anti-gambling group Krusadang Bayan Laban sa Jueteng, revealed that big-time gambling lords are projecting a gambling tripod, which would be composed of jueteng, the STL and Pick-2.

According to Cruz, jueteng operations have already resumed in some parts of Luzon since last month.

The Pangasinan bishop has vehemently campaigned against jueteng, believing it aggravates the plight of the poor while feeding the pockets of gambling lords and supplying the needs of greedy politicians during elections.

"Now that jueteng is once again on deck, it is both strange and interesting why the President would task but a mayor to eradicate it. She has the whole (Department of the Interior and Local Government) at her call. She has the whole (Philippine National Police) at her command. She has all the intelligence and investigative agencies under her orders. Where is the presidential will?" he said.

Cruz noted Mrs. Arroyo had tapped Puerto Princesa Mayor Edward Hagedorn to eradicate jueteng in the country.

But after the Sept. 15 deadline elapsed, Hagedorn admitted the country was not 100 percent clear of jueteng operations.

Cruz supported Hagedorn’s campaign and findings but warned jueteng would eventually creep back for lack of an effective government program against illegal gambling. —Edu Punay