Quezon City won’t be experimental area for ‘STL’

Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte yesterday stood pat on his decision not to allow the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) to engage in the experimental operation of the Small Town Lottery (STL) in the city, saying that the agency should operate in areas where the numbers game is welcome.

Belmonte said in an interview at the weekly radio program "Para Sa Iyo ...Bayan" of Vice President Noli De Castro that Quezon City is almost jueteng-free.

"I told them in Quezon City halos walang (there is almost no) jueteng. Magpunta kayo sa lungsod na gusto kayo (Go to a city where you are welcome)," Belmonte said.

He stressed that he will not allow the city to be an experimental area for STL.

"Our intention is to kill jueteng e kung walang jueteng dito (if there is no jueteng here) why create one?Walang nawalan ng trabaho sa Quezon City because of jueteng (Nobody had lost a job in Quezon City because of jueteng)," he added.

Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno said he was surprised where the 4,000 alleged jueteng collectors in the city came from. The collectors were supposed to have been displaced by the anti-illegal gambling campaign of the government and were given employment when they were hired for STL operation.

The PCSO warned that they will end up facing lawsuits from agent corporations that were awarded contracts to operate the STL in different areas of the country if the numbers game is suspended by the government.

Lawyer Lauro Patiag, manager of the PCSO Legal Affairs, said during the program that the PCSO has contracts with agent corporations which passed the evaluation to operate STL and paid P10 million bond for each corporation.

The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) has earlier announced the suspension of the STL reportedly to ensure that illegal operators would not infiltrate the game.

Despite the DILG pronouncement on the STL’s suspension last month, Patiag said it was not suspended because charges could be filed against the government.

He added that a temporary suspension of the STL can only be decided upon by the PCSO board of directors.

Patiag assured that STL will only be implemented in areas where it is supported by a Sangguniang Bayan resolution.

"It will not operate in areas that do not welcome STL. A Sangguniang resolution is a requirement to welcome STL," Patiag said.

He defended the STL, saying that its operation is within the charter of the PCSO which has the exclusive mandate to conduct lottery nationwide.

The game will be operated by regional corporations which are authorized to run the lottery by collecting bets and paying the cash prizes for the winners as stated in their agreements with PCSO.

Patiag said a deed of authority to collect bets and pay the cash prizes for the winners was given to each corporation in every province based on the legal documents submitted to the PCSO.

Like jueteng, the STL will have three daily draws. At least P6 billion a year is expected to be raised from STL in Luzon alone and P10 billion nationwide.

He assured that the STL is very transparent because the public can witness the drawing of the winning numbers.

The sales agents, the counterpart of the jueteng collectors, are assigned by the agent corporation in every area to collect bets.

According to Patiag,  the funds from STL will be distributed to the Philippine National Police (PNP), provincial, municipal or city governments, congressional district office and the national government through the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) that will receive five percent of the proceeds.