Culture of gambling

A WELL-DESERVED cheer goes out to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, particularly Sixth District Board Member Alfonso Bince Jr., for keeping the hope alive that Pangasinan could still one day proudly declare itself as one of the few and distinguished provinces in the country that is free from the illegal numbers game jueteng.

By expressing their reservation on the operation of the  ‘Loterya’ ng Bayan (LnB) of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) in the province for fear that it will be merely used as a front for continued jueteng operations, the council has taken an important step in finally acknowledging that the illegal game has never really been completely eliminated in Pangasinan.

It, of course, remains to be seen whether the invitation for PCSO Chairman Margarita Juico to appear before the sanggunian to explain about the LnB will just be a moro-moro inquiry. The questions that will be raised by the members of the board – or their silence – to Juico will be a good indication as to who among the council are sincere in wanting an end to the culture of gambling that has become so pervasive in Pangasinan.

The crucial bottom-line question is: what are the chances that the legal LnB, sanctioned and to be monitored by the government, will become a disguise for jueteng? Take the lesson from the recent jai-alai off-fronton betting operations.

We hope Bince is not simply grandstanding and is not alone in his crusade. As he pointed out, jueteng only benefits the wealthy and those in power, leaving the poor bettors with nothing but an illusory chance of getting rich quick.

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‘Sana sa Sona’

IN his first Sona (State of the Nation Address) last year, P-Noy, according to Budget Secretary Butch Abad, told us that under GMA’s 9-year watch from 2001, there was an “infrastructure of corruption”. Butch also said P-Noy’s Sona today (July 24) “will tell the world not only what happened, but also what we were able to do to disentangle that [infrastructure of corruption].” He said P-Noy had run the country “cleanly and well, and you can expect that from us for the coming years.” Further, Abad said, the tone of P-Noy’s Sona will switch from negative “to positive and moving ahead.”

Nice to hear that but, more to the point, here’s hoping P-Noy’s “Sana” (Say And Next Act) today will fulfill his promises of “walang mahirap,” homes for the homeless, creating more jobs and, yes, the good life, finally, for this nation of 90 million ASAP.

Praying P-Noy’s harp for hope in his Sona today is not mere lip-service.

Sana…

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