‘Peryahan ng Bayan’ operations to proceed

MANILA, Philippines — The “Peryahan ng Bayan” (PNB) numbers game remains legal and will continue, its operator said yesterday.

Globaltech Mobile Online Corp. is unfazed by threats from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) to pursue the crackdown on its PNB operations, banking on favorable decisions from the Pasig City Regional Trial Court Branch 161 and Department of Justice (DOJ).

In a statement, Bernard Vitriolo, lawyer for Globaltech, slammed PCSO general manager Alexander Balutan for defying the DOJ resolution issued on Dec. 3, which declared the PNB operations legal.

The Pasig court also issued a status quo ante order stopping the gaming regulator’s revocation of its permit.

Vitriolo accused Balutan of “blatant defiance of court orders, which demonstrated the former general’s disregard of the rule of law by challenging the judicial system.”

“The PCSO chief is now a civilian, having long retired from the military. It behooves on him to recognize the democratic processes by which the justice department and the Pasig court arrived at their respective positions, and submit himself in obedience to said processes,” the lawyer said.

“He should avoid being perceived as the judge, jury and executioner - over and above his job as administrator of the gaming industry,” Vitriolo added.

He said while the PCSO has a pending case against Globaltech before the Court of Appeals, the gaming regulator, especially its head, is duty-bound to implement the status quo order and the DOJ resolution that dismissed the complaint against PNB officers for illegal gambling initiated by some small-town lottery (STL) operators.

Vitriolo hit Balutan for claiming that his office would respect the court ruling and the DOJ resolution and at the same time pursuing the crackdown on PNB operations.

“The PCSO cannot claim to respect the court and DOJ orders and insist on declaring PNB illegal in the same breath. That will result in selective implementation, which is tantamount to splitting hairs and it goes against the rule of law,” the lawyer argued.

Vitriolo questioned the motive of Balutan in his actions against the PNB.

“This represents a ramping up of the lobbying by STL and the pressure being brought to bear against PNB by all parties who will resort to misinformation to achieve their goals,” he said.

“Why is Balutan forcing Globaltech out of business? Is he part of the bid of STL operators to be the only numbers game in town?” Vitriolo asked.

He reiterated their plan to pursue graft and administrative cases against Balutan for his defiance of the court and DOJ orders.

The PCSO has authorized 82 operators of STL nationwide and raised P21.9 billion from January to October last year.

Balutan claimed that 30 percent of the revenue collections from STL automatically went to charity funds of the agency.

Operators interviewed by The STAR, however, said the STL revenue from Regions 1 to 5 alone could reach about P160 million a day or up to P57.6 billion in one year.