President Gloria Arroyo backtracked recently from her plan to put up 2,000 slot machines nationwide, after she was accused of turning her country into a 'gambling republic' and not into a strong republic, as she had envisioned earlier in her state of the nation address in July.
"In the light of strengthening the moral foundation of my leadership, I am announcing that I am instructing (the state-run) Philippines Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) to abort the slot machine arcade project," she said following the criticism from students, teachers, senators, congressmen and the influential Catholic Church for promoting the project. "It is not a question of what is legal; it is a question of what is morally upright and morally sound," Arroyo said.
She admitted that the project will make slot machines accessible to the lower and middle classes as well as students. Arroyo pointed out that she has cancelled PAGCOR's plan to operate jai alai (a ball game which originated from Spain) after the Supreme Court upheld its legality. "The jai alai and the slot machine (projects) do not quite measure up to the moral standards that we have set for governance," Arroyo said.
"If they (in PAGCOR) have to raise money, they should engage in high-end projects that cater to the rich and famous," Arroyo suggested what the PAGCOR can do with its money. She suggested it should set up a Disneyland with a little casino or a tourism estate or a theme park.
She offered to the PAGCOR the reclaimed portion of Manila's Roxas Boulevard, which is owned by the Public Estates Authority, adding it will be an ideal place for the proposed theme park. The PAGCOR had proposed to build a $15 billion 'Entertainment City' on the reclaimed government property.
Arroyo said earlier the PAG-COR's congressional franchise will allow it to implement its proposed slot machine project. The PAGCOR operates the high-end casino, which caters to foreign players. The PAGCOR is one of the largest sources of national revenue.
Critics said Arroyo "cannot escape the suspicion" that Pagcor's new venture will be used to finance her re-election bid in 2002. Critic Archbishop Oscar Cruz, former president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), said promotion of gambling will promote gambling values, adding these will be the 'real termites' that can erode the foundation of her plan to create a 'strong republic'.
Even jailed former president Joseph Estrada, charged for $78 million plunder case and for receiving protection money from illegal gambling lords, criticised Arroyo's approval of the PAGCOR's plan.
Estrada had approved the operation of a slot machine parlour earlier in Manila's Ronquillo, Sta. Cruz in 2000, said Congressman Federico Sandoval, adding if Arroyo goes on with her plan, she will be like 'another Estrada'.
Not all people or communities want gambling dens in their respective areas, Sandoval added. Teachers and parents of the school division of Cebu, central Philippines said slot machines will lure students to cut classes.
Senator Edgardo Angara said the PAGCOR has not been accountable and transparent with its operations and finances, adding the Congress is enacting a law that will place the PAGCOR under the audit of the Commission on Audit.
SOURCE:
Gulf News.
