LINGAYEN– Where there is smoke there is fire.

Police Provincial Director Sr. Supt. Isagani Nerez, in a news conference held Monday, admitted they have received reports that drug and jueteng money are now being used to buy votes in the forthcoming elections for president of the League of Councilors of the Philippines (LCP).

But he quickly added that the information has not been verified but that it will be investigated

“We shall endeavor to ferret out the truth behind these allegations,” Nerez said referring to the alleged use of drug and jueteng money in the PCL election.

Nerez hastily called the news conference after one group supposedly supporting a candidate aspiring to become PCL president implied that the police have not moved against jueteng operators.

There are two aspirants for the presidency of the PCL: Councilors Dennis Uy of Pozorrubio and Raul Sison of Urbiztondo.

Ironically, the campaigns of the two candidates are being backed separately by groups known to have helped ensure the election of Gov. Amado Espino Jr. last May.

Uy, son of Board Member Danilo Uy and Councilor Myrna Belle Uy of Binalonan, is reportedly being backed up by the ABONO partylist led by Rep. Robert Estrella Jr. and businessman Rosendo So as well as Rep. Mark Cojuangco of the 5th district and Rep Conrado Estrella III of the 6th District.

Sison’s bid, on the other hand, is reportedly backed by Governor Espino Jr.

Political observers note that Cojuangco, the two Estrellas, So and Espino were allies in the last election but their relationships seem to be now falling apart owing to the PCL election.

Under the Local Government Code, whoever will be chosen PCL chapter president will sit in the provincial board as ex-officio member.

ARRESTS

Meanwhile, in defending his command’s efforts in the campaign against jueteng, Nerez cited records indicating that 32   arrests have been made since July 1, six of whom are already facing charges in court.

Nerez also belied claims that jueteng now thrives in all municipalities following the assumption of Espino as governor as compared to the previous administration.

“With the orders and guidance from Gov. Espino, we were able to dismantle organized jueteng operations and what is left are sporadic kangaroo type allegedly managed by local operators,” Nerez said.

Denying the report that  jueteng has made a resurgence in Pangasinan, Nerez claimed that  many towns in the province are now jueteng-free compared to only two towns before Espino took over as governor.

Nerez revealed that while he has a standing order for chiefs of police to seek the help of their respective mayors to confront the recurring problem of jueteng, this measure is not adequate because of the complexity and the cultural aspect of the problem.

“What we need here is a total and collective approach, like renewal of moral and spiritual values and enhancement of people’s  livelihood in order to dissuade people from engaging  in illegal gambling,” he said.—LM

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