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[av_heading heading=’‘TOKHANG’ VS ILLEGAL GAMBLING | Will there be killings, too?’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY RUBY P. SILUBRICO
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Thursday, May 4, 2017
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ILOILO City – The Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) is making its antidrug drive the template for its campaign against illegal gambling.
Policemen have started tokhang or house-to-house operations on suspected illegal gambling personalities, announced Superintendent Gilbert Gorero, spokesperson of the regional police.
The strategy involves knocking (toktok) on houses and convincing (hangyo) suspects to stop their illegal activities.
Last week policemen talked to two suspected illegal gambling financiers in Iloilo province, said Gorero – “Indo” in Barotac Nuevo town and “Piping” of Banate.
“We appealed to them to instead support legal gambling such as Small Town Lottery (STL) because this can help people,” said Gorero.
In this campaign, uncooperative suspects will be subjected to anti-illegal gambling operations.
“We are not threatening them. We are really serious in our campaign,” Gorero added.
In the antidrug drive, those resisting arrest and jeopardizing the police’s safety are shot.
STL is now legal in Iloilo province. A franchisee of the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) started operating just this April 23.
“One of the guidance from our regional director (Chief Superintendent Jose Gentiles) is to eliminate illegal gambling by encouraging people to place bets only with the PCSO franchisee,” said Gorero.
The licensed STL operator in Iloilo province is Eagle-Crest Gaming Corp.
More illegal gambling personalities will be subjected to tokhang in the coming weeks, said Gorero.
The PRO-6 received information that a group of persons planned to operate the illegal numbers game “bookies” in Iloilo and their financier was from Davao City.
They had a meeting in Pototan, Iloilo last week, said Gorero.
The Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) was monitoring the group’s movements.
“I’m telling the group to stop or we would arrest them,” said Gorero.
According to IPPO director Senior Superintendent Harold Tuzon, his special team in antidrug operations was the same group tasked to run after illegal gambling personalities.
“There would be no letup in our anti-illegal gambling drive. Kung nagawa natin mag-arrest ng maraming drug dealers, gawin rin natin sa gambling,” said Tuzon.
PCSO expanded the operation of STL nationwide to help the government’s anti-illegal gambling drive.
“Answering the call of President Rodrigo Duterte to eliminate illegal gambling and stop corruption in the country, PCSO expanded its STL operations from 18 areas since it started in 2006 to 56 areas nationwide this year,” said PCSO chairman Jose Jorge Corpuz recently./PN
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