Grossing P3 billion a day, e-sabong lords boldly killed
At its peak in Nov. 2021-Apr. 2022 e-sabong grossed P3 billion a day.
It was second only to shabu among lucrative vices. The difference was that e-sabong was legal while shabu wasn’t.
But e-sabong, like shabu, corrupted high officials of the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary.
Protected by government, e-sabong henchmen boldly abducted and executed 34 suspected cheaters in Apr. 2021 to Jan. 2022. A whistleblower now says the number of murdered cockfighters is more than a hundred.
None has been jailed. Only now are the Department of Justice and NBI investigating. Suspects include a former judge, an ex-congressman, two vice lords and 24 police officers.
E-sabong sprouted in 2011 as online “tupada” (colorum) of bored overseas Filipinos. It boomed during the 2020 pandemic lockdown.
Two big outfits and three small ones cashed in on the craze.
At first, they held cockfights only five hours a day. As business boomed, they extended it to eight, then 12, finally to 24 hours, seven days a week.
Pagcor belatedly taxed e-sabong on suggestion of strictly-regulated, highly-levied casinos.
A “sultada” (cockfight) took only two to five minutes. But online bets reached tens of millions.
Around 500 “sultada” were held per day per operator. Grossing P3 billion a day was easy.
Ninety percent of the P3 billion daily gross was paid out to winning bettors. Ten percent net income of P300 million a day went to operators.
That loot influenced lawmakers and silenced church hierarchs. Noticeably, less than a dozen of 130 Catholic bishops raised a howl.
This I wrote in Gotcha, 15 Oct. 2021:
“On Sep. 13th the House of Reps rushed a 25-year e-sabong franchise for Lucky-8 Star Quest Inc. It took only a day to move the measure from committee recommendation, inclusion in the order of business, period of sponsorship and approval on first and second readings. ‘Inordinate haste,’ former Speaker Alan Cayetano decried. Lucky-8 is associated with Charlie ‘Atong’ Ang, implicated in the 2001 plunder case against deposed president Joseph Estrada.
“Two weeks later, the House committee on franchises suddenly endorsed to the plenary another 25-year e-sabong franchise for Visayas Cockers Club. Sponsor: Negros Oriental Rep. Arnolfo Teves. Rep. Eddie Villanueva complained to committee head Franz Alvarez the non-livestreaming of the supposedly public hearing, catching oppositors unaware.
“The rushing of the franchises precedes the congressional break for filing of candidacies for Election 2022.”
E-sabong corrupted society itself. Addicted bettors malingered from gainful employment. A Quezon City cop was arrested for raising gambling money by robbing seven convenience and courier outlets in Bulacan and Nueva Ecija. Former Pampanga Mayor Jerry Pelayo denounced four suicides by heavily indebted bettors. Villanueva reported other suicides in Bulacan.
Operators claimed to debar minors and overseas workers. But enforcement was spotty. A ten-year-old boy in Pampanga got their longtime housemaid to register for him, Pelayo lamented. The family discovered it only after the boy stole cash from his parents and siblings and hocked their appliances. A worker in the Middle East lost to e-sabong all his savings for a Manila wedding.
The 1974 Cockfight Act limits games to only weekends and holidays and betting to only inside cockpits. E-sabong openly broke it. President Rody Duterte reluctantly banned e-sabong only in May 2022.
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Congress rightly banned Chinese offshore gaming hubs for cyber scamming, human trafficking, narco-trading and money laundering.
But now it’s going overboard in planning to ban all online gaming. That includes legit ones by licensed, taxpaying casinos.
Casinos cannot fly-by-night precisely because they’re brick-and-mortar. They invested multibillion dollars in real estate, construction, slot machines, card tables, restaurants, hotel suites, concert halls and tourists and sports facilities. They directly employ tens of thousands. Plus, give business to tens of thousands more, like food and beverage makers, entertainers, builders, decorators, travel agents and suppliers.
Take, for one, Bloomberry Resorts and Hotels Inc., operator of Solaire. It recently reported:
“BRHI’s commitment goes beyond exceptional gaming experience. We uphold the highest standards of integrity, transparency and compliance with all applicable laws and regulations – prioritizing ethical business practices and responsible gaming.
“Since opening in 2013 BRHI has consistently adhered to strict responsible gaming principles. These principles have seamlessly extended into our online gaming platforms, Solaire Online and megaFUNalo.”
Among BRHI’s online gaming features:
• Strict enforcement of Pagcor’s geographic restrictions via advanced geo-fencing and IP-filtering to prevent player registration and betting from outside the Philippines;
• Rigorous anti-money laundering through know-your-customer for integrity of operations and safeguard of players;
• Promotion of responsible gaming using tools like self-exclusion, account restrictions and minimum P1,000 deposit for Solaire online, double Pagcor’s P500 requirement;
• Prohibition of minors through age-gating and verification;
• Assistance for individuals with gambling-related issues;
• Pagcor approval of all games and equipment, including certified random number generators to ensure fairness and transparency;
• Pagcor and Advertising Standards Council clearance of promo materials, ensuring ethical communication and social responsibility;
• Compliance with Data Privacy Act to protect personal and financial information with security protocols, including encryption and access controls;
• Routine audits of gaming systems, transaction records and compliance procedures to reinforce accountability and integrity.
Incidentally, all big casinos have foundations that individually or jointly build homes, school houses and evacuee shelters.
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Catch Sapol radio show, Saturdays, 8 to 10 a.m., DWIZ (882-AM).
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