BAGUIO CITY – New Cordillera regional police director Benjamin Magalong has ordered his men to go on an all-out drive against illegal gambling like jueteng in the region.
“I have issued a written directive to this effect (against illegal gambling), he told a press conference at the Philippine Information Agency regional office here Thursday.
To date illegal jueteng operations were still being conducted by “lords” of the illegal numbers game at press time, according to informants.
Identified areas where jueteng was prevalent included Baguio, the provinces of Abra and Kalinga, and the towns of La Trinidad, Itogon. Tuba, Tublay, Mankayan and Buguias in Benguet.
In La Trinidad, draws were reportedly being held at a woodworks establishment beside a gasoline station along km 3 of the Halsema Highway.
Sources said police have reportedly ignored information about the drawing area in the past from concerned sectors.
In Baguio, jueteng draws have reportedly increased from three to four draws daily with bets being taken from nearby Benguet towns like Itogon and Tuba.
In Mankayan and Buguias, jueteng had reportedly been unhampered despite reports about the illegal numbers game in the two mining and vegetable towns respectively.
Concerned residents and cause-oriented groups have been assailing the police under the former regional police command saying its garnering a citation for “best regional police command” nationwide was a farce since illegal gambling had not been curbed or stopped in the Cordillera but became worse.
They said they expected the new police command under Chief Supt. Magalong to be serious in stopping illegal gambling aside from addressing other crimes. -- AD
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