Voting 8-4, SC stops jai alai

El fallo del juez es inapelable (The referee’s decision is final).

The Supreme Court (SC) ordered yesterday the closure of all jai alai betting stations in the country after it found the game’s operators did not have the required franchise from Congress.

Voting 8-4, SC justices said that contrary to what it says, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) does not have the power to grant a franchise for jai alai operations.

Thus, the justices ruled that Pagcor had erred when it granted Bell Jai Alai Corp. and Filipinas Gaming Entertainment Totalizator Corp. (Filgame) the authority to manage, maintain and operate jai alai.

"From its creation in 1977 and until 1999, Pagcor never alleged that it has a franchise to operate jai alai," said the High Court in its ruling.

"Twenty-two years is a long stretch of silence. It is inexplicable why it never claimed its alleged franchise for so long a time which could have allowed it to earn billions of pesos as additional income," it added.

Four congressmen earlier questioned Pagcor’s approval of the revival of jai alai operations. Reps. Raul del Mar (Cebu), Federico Sandoval (Malabon), Juan Miguel Zubiri (Bukidnon) and Michael Defensor (Quezon City) all claimed that Pagcor and the two private companies usurped Congress’ authority of granting franchises to legal gambling.

The 42-page SC decision was penned by Senior Justice Reynato Puno. Puno said Pagcor cannot use the decrees issued by deposed dictator Ferdinand Marcos on jai alai since these had been revoked when Corazon Aquino took over the presidency in 1986.

He noted that on May 1987, Aquino issued Executive Order 169 which repealed Marcos’ presidential decrees 810 and 1124. "The new order revoked the jai alai franchise which was then controlled by the Romualdezes in Manila," he said.

Puno added that the law is clear on the extent of Pagcor’s powers. "There can be no sliver of doubt that Pagcor’s franchise is only to operate gambling casinos and not jai alai," he said.