Small-town lottery kills anti-jueteng awards

“Thanks to the legalization of jueteng through small-town lottery (STL) for stopping annual anti-gambling awards for local officials who resist the illegal number’s racket," Lingayen-Dagupan archbishop Oscar Cruz said Wednesday. The Krusadang Bayan Laban sa Jueteng (KBLJ) organized the awards for local officials who say "no to Jueteng." "With deep regret, KBLJ announces that the annual awards event will be stopped because Malacañang legalized jueteng through the introduction of STL. Jueteng and STL are gambling twins exploiting the same poor people and benefiting the same gambling lords," Cruz said. Malacañang now provides gambling to the rich through the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp., and to the poor through the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, he said. Cruz said the KBLJ has resolved to attend to three primary agenda to counter the gambling culture promoted by Malacañang. First, it will monitor the STL-jueteng operations; second, it will undertake a better anti-gambling education campaign; and third, it will have a co-partner dubbed the Krusadang Bayan Laban sa Sugal (KBLS). –GMANews.TV