ONLINE gambling must—not should— be stopped, totally… ‘ora mismo.’
This declaration was made by Senator Erwin Tulfo right after being given the chairmanship of the Senate Committee on Games and Amusement, saying that if he would have his way, he would want online gambling stopped ‘right here and now.’
“Kung ako po ang masusunod, ora mismo, dapat itigil na ang online gambling, because of the fact na masama na po ang nangyayari. Karamihan, di na nagagawa ang kanilang trabaho. Take the case of that lawmaker na nahuling nago-online sabong. ‘Yung isa, card games. Nakakahiya naman ho di ba?” he said.
The neophyte senator noted how the ill effects of online gambling gets more serious by the day.
In the absence of laws that would effectively put an immediate stop to all forms of online gambling, Senator Tulfo said he intends to discuss the matter with Malacañang.
“We can only recommend our position right now kasi wala pa po tayong batas but given a chance, definitely…ayoko po ng online gambling,” he stressed.
Tulfo stressed the urgency of imposing a total ban on the said vice which, he stressed, destroys families, work and lives in general.
In the same breadth, Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) Executive Director Gilbert Cruz shared the same stand, saying a total stop on online gambling is the only solution to the ill effects that it brings and which worsen while continuously attracting more clients.
Speaking at the MACHRA Balitaan which is held monthly by the Manila City Hall Reporters’ Association (MACHRA) at the Harbor View Restaurant in Ermita, Cruz said that mere possession of cellphones is like having a casino right in the palm of your hands, noting how cellphones these days have become accessible even to children.
Just like Tulfo, the PAOCC chief said that it would be better to already put a stop to online gambling not a day later.
Citing information gathered by his office, Cruz said that online gambling, regardless of whether or not legal, has already destroyed the lives of many of our fellow Filipinos.
Worse, he said, online gambling is accessible even to minors and there is currently no way to stop them from engaging in it, as he suggested that the ban be begun with cellphones providing access to the online gambling apps.
