SP wants STL to replace jueteng
LINGAYEN–A resolution was filed before the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) on Friday giving the green light to the operation of Small Lottery (STL) in Pangasinan, ostensibly in an effort to stamp out the illegal numbers game jueteng.
Under the resolution, STL will be operated by a duly registered corporation pre-qualified and given franchise by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).
The resolution was filed by Board Member Alfonso Bince Jr. of the Fifth District even as the SP still has a standing invitation to PCSO Chair Margarita Juico to come to its session and apprise the body on the mechanics of STL.
Jueteng has been completely stopped in the province, according the provincial police, after Governor Amado Espino called for an all-out war against the illegal operations.
There have been reports that there are still jueteng operations in some parts of the province, albeit “guerrilla” style.
Espino’s call came after he was named by retired Archbishop Oscar Cruz as among those benefitting from payola coming from jueteng operations, an accusation that the governor has vehemently denied.
CONDITIONS FOR STL
Bince said in order to properly monitor STL, there should be only one operator in all the 44 towns and three component cities of the province.
The STL franchisee, he added, must be carefully chosen based on its capitalization and good track record in running the legal lottery.
To ensure transparency, the operator must submit a monthly report to the PCSO and the province detailing the proceeds it had registered, including the shares due the province, municipalities, cities and charitable institutions, including the Philippine National Police.
The provincial board, Bince said, will conduct a thorough public hearing in order to consult the people and various sectors regarding the matter.
The STL was first discussed in the SP in 2007, then under the administration of former Governor Victor Agbayani, Archbishop Cruz, then head of the Lingayen-Dagupan archdiocese, opposed it, branding it as a mere front for jueteng.—LM
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