Any PCSO probe must include Swertres

Since everybody seems to be in an investigating mood following President Duterte's sudden move of shutting down all Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office gambling operations on suspicion of massive corruption, and the just as sudden lifting of the shutdown, perhaps an investigation into Swertres operations should be the first order of any probe of the PCSO.

Swertres is one of the gambling games offered by PCSO which, along with lotto, was one of the few such games ordered swiftly reinstated following the sudden ban. It is a game where a bet is placed on any three numbers chosen by the bettor from 1 to 10, with 10 being a 0.

The three numbers chosen must be in exact order as the winning combination. But here is where things get interesting, or suspicious. Unlike the lotto whose winning combinations are drawn live on television every night, it is not clear how the winning number combinations of Swertres are drawn.

Now I do not know what the probability ratio is in hitting the right number combination in Swertres, but as in any gambling game, it certainly must be very low or difficult. But that is not the problem because there are indeed winners in any of the three draws conducted daily, unlike the lotto where oftentimes there are no winners in a draw.

But of course it is more difficult to win the lotto because in lotto you need to get six numbers right from a choice of 42 numbers, 45 numbers, 49 numbers, 55 numbers, and 58 numbers, depending on the game. But then again, the prizes in lotto are much much bigger than in Swertres.

That is unless you place enough bets on a certain three-digit combination. And this is where I said things can get interesting, or suspicious. Despite being comparatively easier to win in Swertres than in lotto, it is still no walk in the park to hit the winning three-digit combination, especially if such combination is intrinsically weird, like 000, for instance.

Now this is just an example, although it has actually happened, not just once, or twice, but many times. Now let us say that, improbable as it may seem, a 000 winning combination did come out in, say, the 4 p.m. draw. Now nobody in his right mind would bet on a crazy number like 000 coming out again in the 9 p.m. draw.

But it has happened, not once, not twice, but many times. And not just with crazy numbers but with regular numbers coming out in successive draws. Defying the odds of probabilities is just too much to tax our credulity with. The suspicion is somebody, perhaps a syndicate, can make a killing wagering on a combination that already came out and on which no one else would bet.

How this can happen, having the same combinations come out in succession, ought to be the subject of any investigation. A bettor fully understands the odds he faces and is willing to take his chances if the game is fair and square. But it is too much to have the odds already stacked against him and still have to contend with possibilities of manipulation and collusion.