By Romy Teruel
Sunday Post Columnist
The successful raid by the police of the suspected swertres operator that netted P586,715.00 last week tells us many things but let's just zero in on three: 1) that swertres is very much alive in Bohol, 2) that for a genuine and meaningful campaign against illegal gambling the police must find every legal means to crack it, and 3) that there is so much profit in illegal gambling to attract people even in high places and power to have penchant for it.
Let me add a fourth. In standing by his friend and political ally, Mayor Dan Lim is playing his biggest political gamble.
For that sum alone the police confiscated, there were 586, 715 bettors granting that each only placed a bet of P1. That is almost half of the population of Bohol. If the bet was placed at P2 each, there were 293,357 bettors for that day only. But let's be more conservative and raise the bet to P20 as one of my staff says as her highest bet when she was still crazy about swertres. That would still be 29,335 bettors for that day and to one financier alone. That's almost one-fourth of the population of Tagbilaran City betting on swertres. Who says that illegal gamblers are a diminishing tribe? That number would still make us a city of gamblers.
One reason put forward by the proponent s of Small Town Lotto (STL) when they campaigned for its operation in the municipalities was that it would eliminate the illegal numbers game because then bettors will have outlets in the municipalities where they could place their bets, and these are legal outlets. The police raid on the residence of Brgy. Captain Manolo Blanco of Mansasa in Tagbilaran City is proof that even if the outlets are a step away from the house of bettors, they would still bet on the illegal numbers game because there are coordinators who pick up their bets and deliver their winnings.
Col. Ed Ingking, the outgoing provincial director of the PNP in Bohol, said that there are 27 financiers of swertres in their watch list in 34 towns employing 83 coordinators who are supported with motorcycles. Seven of these financiers are in Tagbilaran City.
Now the courts in Bohol are mad because the search warrant to conduct the raid was filed in Cebu City. Indeed that is an indictment of the courts here in Bohol. I asked Col. Ingking about it and he said that he would resort to any lawful means that would help him succeed in his campaign against illegal gambling. Even his own men, Col. Ingking said, did not know at the beginning where they were going. Only after he has collected their cell phones did he inform them of their mission. And he succeeded.
I do not want to speculate but gambling lords having connections in high places is an information that we learned in elementary. So perhaps instead of asking the police, the courts should ask themselves instead. Yes, why? If I were Col. Ingking I would have done what needed to be done s long as these are within the bounds of the law.
Now why would a Barangay Captain be so bold as to involve himself in illegal activities? I'm sure his lawyer will help him convince the court about his innocence, although with the evidence on hand the only way to get out of it is to say that the raid was conducted illegally hoping that with the courts here being mad, they might, just might be convinced.
Is it the amount of daily take that blinds a person in high government post to throw his oath out of the window? Col. Ingking said about 50% of the gross income is the earning of the financier.
And as we wrote at the beginning, Mayor Dan Lim is playing his biggest political gamble in his life by saying that he stands by his friend and political ally on this case. As a friend to a friend, I salute Mayor Lim when he said he would provide a lawyer to the Barangay Captain. But as a politician to his ally, who is helping who and who is destroying who?
Lastly, an appeal to the people is in order. We need every one's cooperation to eliminate illegal gambling. The solution is simple. Do not bet. No financier can last more than a month if there are no bettors. No bettors, no illegal gambling.
Linkback:
https://tubagbohol.mikeligalig.com/index.php?topic=20214.0
