Morales orders crackdown on illegal gambling

MABALACAT -- Mayor Marino "Boking" Morales ordered the local police Friday to stop all forms of illegal gambling in the town. In a memorandum to this town's police chief, Supt. Rosve Manulid, Morales expressed intention in apprehending "personalities" involved in the illegal numbers and cards games including jueteng, "monte", and "sakla", among others. Morales's drive against illegal gambling came after the Central Luzon police regional office in Camp Olivas intensified its campaign against the operation of big-time jueteng operators in the region. "We encourage members of the church and the citizenry to report any illegal gambling activities in the town. The active participation of citizens will assure the success of the drive versus illegal gambling," Morales said. Morales also said the local government is now preparing on how to implement employment and livelihood programs for jueteng bet collectors (kubradors) and "kabos" who might be displaced because of the campaign against the illegal gambling. "We will apply the full force of the law against operators of these illegal gamblings. We are optimistic that the town would be free from illegal gambling operations in few weeks time," Morales added. Sources said jueteng operators in Central Luzon are earning P3 million to P3.5 million a day. Earlier, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) and the PNP has signed a memorandum of cooperation in the campaign against the illegal numbers game. Under the agreement signed by CBCP president Archbishop Fernando Capalla and PNP chief Hermogenes Ebdane, priests will provide information on jueteng in their parishes. The same cooperation is expected among parishes in Central Luzon in a bid to weed out the evils of gambling.