Leyte guv takes pro stand on STL operations in the province

By Provincial Media Relations Center
June 6, 2010

TACLOBAN CITY  –  Leyte Governor Carlos Jericho Petilla is taking a pro stand on the operation of small town lottery in some towns in the province of Leyte provided that the operation of the said number games is implemented properly.

The governor said his stand is based on the fact that gambling is an “age-old vice” that is very, very hard to eradicate and that the government should come in to set out the guidelines with the end view of eradicating other illegal numbers game.

“It is a known fact that people just love to bet, trying their luck on the numbers game to win. There has been an unending campaign to totally eradicate it but still it persists. With the STL, as long as it is operated and implemented properly, I see no reason why we should object,” Gov. Petilla said.

The governor on the other hand respects the stand of the church to stop the operations of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO)-supervised STL, to which the Church has earlier contended that instead of pushing the numbers game, officials should instead come up with programs and projects that will generate employment and income for the poor people.

The Church fears this would further place the people deeper into financial despair, as money earned at the end of a day’s work would instead be spent to bet via STL.

Bettors can place their bet in as low as P1 to win P800.  There is no maximum amount limit for bettors.

Gov. Petilla however remains optimistic that with proper implementation, this operation would eliminate the illegal numbers game while the local government would benefit from the STL operation through a percentage share in the gross sales.

It was learned that 55 percent of the gross sales would be allocated for the prizes and 15 percent would finance the STL operation and the salaries.