Baguio execs move vs jueteng, bingo, casino

By Aileen P. Refuerzo

BAGUIO CITY – City officials have started moves to stop gambling like jueteng, bingo and casino operations in this tourist resort which they said, was contrary to Baguio’s image as a “character city.”

The city council Monday approved a resolution “condemning in the strongest terms the resurgence of an illegal operation of Bingo sa Barangay in the city.”

On Sunday, over 40 barangay captains issued a manifesto “expressing support to the continuing drive against jueteng.”

On Thursday, Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr. said he will stand by his position not to allow the operation of casino in Camp John Hay or anywhere in the city.

The mayor was reacting to a city council move the other week calling for an investigation into reports of a covert casino operation in John Hay.

The mayor said to date, his office has not received any application for casino operation anywhere in the city and if ever there will be, he will deny the same.

He said his office is also looking into the proliferation of unauthorized lotto outlets in the city.

He said there are at present 22 lotto outlets operating in the city but only four have the necessary permits.

On the bingo action, Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) president Councilor Joel Alangsab, who proposed the resolution to the city council, said he received reports the bingo operation has been restarted by some punong barangays without the approval of the ABC.

“Since there is no official endorsement from the ABC or the barangays, much less approval for the use of the nomenclature ‘Bingo sa Barangay’ from the corporation that owns the patent, the legality of this resurgent bingo sa barangay is put into question,” he said.

Alangsab said the Bingo sa Barangay was originally planned as a fund-raising activity for the barangays.

As such, it was endorsed by the ABC through Resolution No. 10 series of 2008.

The said resolution was later recalled when majority of the ABC board of directors approved a resolution withdrawing support for the activity prompting Alangsab to stop the activity.

On the anti-jueteng front, the manifesto issued by the barangay captains said they endorsed a petition to eradicate the illegal numbers game in their barangays.

“The barangay captains together with their councils are aware of the operation of jueteng in the barangays and despite coordination with authorities, jueteng still proliferates in the city,” they said.

The punong barangays resolved “to manifest and express support to the continuing drive to stop jueteng in the barangays by reporting to the proper authorities the existence of this illegal activity and pinpointing the locations of their operations.”