Manne wrote:
It has been said that life is one big gamble. Sooner or later, a person has to make a very important decision in his life, and he must weigh his options carefully. His success depends on making the right decision. That’s a gamble because much of the future is uncertain, something like what happens at a gambling casino.
History reveals that gambling has destroyed families, careers, and even lives. Hard-earned money meant for food, clothing, the rent, medication, tuition and the like end up wagered and wasted in gambling games. Losses are often followed by violence, crime, deprivation, depression, and destruction of the moral and social fabric.
Institutionalized gambling is worse. In gambling casinos, the odds are always in favor of the house. The real winners are the owners and operators of the gambling establishments. That was, and remains true in Las Vegas, in Reno, and in Monaco—the celebrated gambling destinations of the world. In fact, gambling is the sole industry in those cities. Tourists go there precisely to gamble.
Privately-owned casinos proliferated in the Philippines in the 1960s, particularly in Manila and in Pasay City. When President Ferdinand Marcos placed the country under martial law in 1972, all casinos were closed down. Gambling was limited to the government-run “floating casino” on Manila Bay, but it was exclusive for tourists and the really affluent. Middle-class individuals were not allowed inside and, therefore, were not tempted to wager their hard-earned money at the probability tables.
After a fire ended the maritime casino, its activities were moved to a restricted area in Pasay City. The same prohibitions, however, remained in force.
At the height of the so-called “snap election” in early 1986, presidential candidate Corazon Aquino pledged to close down gambling casinos in the country. The closure move was urged by Salvador “Doy” Laurel, her vice presidential running mate.
When candidate Aquino became President Aquino, she reneged on her pledge and expanded casino operations instead. Institutionalized gambling soon became a reality in Metropolitan Manila and in urban areas like Olongapo City, Tagaytay City, and Cebu City. Under Mrs. Aquino, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) became a lucrative revenue-raising agency of the government.
Asked why she reneged on her campaign pledge, Aquino answered that the 1986 Edsa Revolution erased all of her campaign promises. Good grief!
In the years that followed, Pagcor expanded its operations to include online gambling stations, which are Internet cafés exclusively for casino games, in almost all urban areas in the country.
Pagcor even went to the extent of staking exclusive domain over bingo activities all over the country. The old reliable college alumni and charity fund raising bingo socials were outlawed overnight.
Surprisingly, Pagcor does not use the word “gambling” when it refers to its operations. The euphemism “gaming” is used instead.
There is the crime of “illegal gambling,” which suggests the existence of “legal gambling.” If the gambling activity is done under the auspices of Pagcor, then it is legal gambling. When the same gambling activity is done by say, sidewalk low life, it’s illegal gambling. This distinction makes the national government the biggest gambling lord in the country.
If the gambling casinos are bad, the online gambling stations are worse. Online gambling stations are Internet cafes devoted to gambling games. Using software technology provided by PhilWeb Corp., a private company with a franchise from Pagcor, customers can choose from more than 300 casino games like blackjack, baccarat, poker, and slot machines. Naturally, the games are designed to favor the house.
These stations are obviously very profitable. If it were otherwise, they would have closed shop a long time ago.
Online gambling stations are attractive, and they are accessible to schools and residential communities. Since admission restrictions are hardly enforced in these stations, young people, students mostly, are easily enticed to gamble away their allowances there. Because gambling can be habit-forming, many students get addicted to gambling. Youngsters end up spending their waking hours at these stations, instead of at home or school.
Almost every urban area has an online gambling station. Collectively, these online gambling stations are called the e-games network.
President Duterte recently declared a crackdown on these online gambling stations because they undermine the welfare of the Filipino youth. He instructed Pagcor not to renew the PhilWeb license.
PhilWeb Corp. denies that it is directly involved in gambling activities, and claims that it only provides the software used by Pagcor in the online gambling stations. The company also claims that its software cannot be played from homes or offices.
If PhilWeb has nothing to do with the online gambling stations, PhilWeb must explain why it undertook the physical task of closing those stations. PhilWeb should also explain why the value of its capital stock soared when the operations of the e-gambling network were in high gear.
The mere fact that PhilWeb’s software cannot be played in homes and offices does not warrant the conclusion that the company is not involved in the operations of the online gambling stations.
PhilWeb alleges that the closure of the e-gambling network will displace some 5,000 employees, and deprive the government of P2.1 billion in annual taxes. Admittedly, that is an unpleasant scenario, but are those valid grounds to warrant the continued operations of the on-line gambling stations? Of course not. A morally and socially objectionable activity does not cease to be objectionable simply because it generates employment and pays plenty of tax money to the government.
Why is the crackdown on
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2014/04/23
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