DU30’s PCSO order underlines the meaning of ‘catharsis’
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Sun, 28 Jul 2019 16:14:39 +0000
AS if to illustrate what he meant when he spoke of the need for a catharsis in the nation’s public life during his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA), President Duterte on Friday unleashed the equivalent of a thunderbolt on the operations of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO), to the surprise of both the agency and the nation.
The announcement was unusually released. It skirted the normal channel of presidential communications, via a briefing of the Malacañang press corps.
Instead, the announcement, described as “a special message,” was uploaded on the Facebook page of the Presidential Communications Operations Office late Friday night.
In the message, the President himself announced:
“I have today ordered the closure, the stoppage of all gaming schemes… whatever nature, however done, that got the franchises from the PCSO. The ground is massive corruption involving all, even the courts who repeatedly issued injunctions to paralyze government and to allow corruption to thrive.”
President Duterte’s order could not have been more emphatic or sweeping. He used the term “closure” and not a mere suspension of operations. He said “all,” not some, gaming operations.
The order did not cover an office that has escaped executive oversight because of the labyrinth of the bureaucracy. It concerns an agency that is right within the Office of the President under its full supervision and control.
What is perhaps most unsettling is the reason or reasons cited by the President for the closure order.
He placed the onus for the decision on “massive corruption, even a grand conspiracy” to cheat, rob and defraud the public and the government.
The stink envelops all gaming activities of PCSO, including lotto, small town lottery (STL) and keno, and other gaming schemes. It involves especially the licenses and franchises granted by the PCSO, which will be fully stopped.
To highlight the urgency of his decision, DU30 said he could not allow corruption to thrive in the country. He said with no little sadness:
“Wala ako magawa (I have no choice). I have to do it. I will not honor transactions that are clearly on the side of scheming people. Puro dayaan lahat (It’s all cheating). At ‘yung mga kontrata ay parang (And the contracts seem to be) crafted in favor of corruption, and to favor other corporations and people. I will not allow it,” he added.
Accordingly, the President gave law enforcers 24 hours starting Saturday to stop PCSO games, which he declared as illegal.
The President blamed the PCSO for his unexpected move: “Talagang hiningi ninyo. Sinabi ko na nga walang corruption. Hinihingi talaga ninyo, ibigay ko sa inyo. (You asked for it. I already said no corruption. You really asked for it, so I’ll give it to you).”
Duterte said he prefers to stop all forms of gambling in the country, but he would have to talk to Congress about it.
Complying with the President’s order, Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Oscar Albayalde led closure operations on Saturday.
Albayalde also directed all police regional offices nationwide to launch a “massive crackdown” on illegal gambling and arrest anyone who would continue engaging in illegal activities.
This is not the first time that DU30 has spoken of corruption at the PCSO. He once called it “the most corrupt” agency.
The corruption has evidently risen to such an alarming level that the agency dares to legalize or facilitate illegal gambling.
On this, the President is indignant:
“You know what they’re doing there? Jueteng has been merged with small town lottery. They have this agreement with government that they would run this, they get a commission. But, as it turned out, they trim it down. The government gets only 20 percent. Billions of pesos every day are pocketed,”
This is an abominable development that clearly had to be stopped.
The corrupt system in the PCSO may need more than a purgative. It may have to be cauterized like a cancer.