MARCH 25, 2012 DATE

NR # 2689B
REF. NO.

Ranking House leader wants to legalize jueteng

A ranking House leader has proposed the legalization of jueteng, an illegal numbers game in the country, saying the government can benefit from it to increase revenue collection. Its high time to legalize it so government can raise more revenues to support its many socio-economic and livelihood programs, including infrastructure for education and health, said Rep. Amado Bagatsing (5th District, Manila), author of House Bill 3248. Bagatsing, Chairman of the House Committee on Games and Amusement, said illegal jueteng is a grassroots-based gaming operation that crosses most, if not all social and economic boundaries and played by the rich and poor alike. Bagatsing said jueteng continues to proliferate in many areas like Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog, Northern Luzon, Metro Manila, the Bicol Region, Cagayan Valley, and the Cordillera Autonomous Region. The lure of quick money is its strongest appeal. While jueteng continue to be a lucrative source of livelihood for collectors and operators, government never earned a single cent, and instead spent public money trying to kill it, Bagatsing said. By legalizing jueteng, government would have the opportunity to regulate the numbers game which competes with legal games of chance like the Lotto and its variations, and the Sweepstakes draw, Bagatsing said. Bagatsing said the government has not been able to eradicate this form of unregulated gambling, precisely because of its popularity with the under-privileged and the middle class. Bagatsing cited the Unholy Nation, a book about jueteng operation in the Philippines written by Tiffany Tan, which discloses how police authorities and local politicians protect the operation of the illegal numbers game in the country. The collusion between the police and the jueteng operators and the utter disregard by those in power who benefit from this illegal numbers game is one of the primary reasons why jueteng continue to exist, Bagatsing said. Through legalization, the government stands to earn revenues, the proceeds of which would finance government programs and projects, provide jueteng workers a legitimate means to earn a living, and stamp out corruption, Bagatsing said. (30) dpt