SENATOR PANFILO M. Lacson on Monday said the committee on games and amusement, which he chairs, may invite alleged illegal gambling lord Rodolfo “Bong” Pineda in the next hearing on the ongoing inquiry on the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).

Mr. Pineda, who is married to Pampanga Governor Lilia G. Pineda, was repeatedly mentioned in the two previous Senate hearings as allegedly running jueteng, an illegal numbers game, in the guise of PCSO-accredited small town lotteries (STLs) and using dummies to operate.

“We might really consider calling him (referring to Mr. Pineda) in the next hearing. Since he operates in so many provinces and at the same time there are allegations on him having guerrilla operations,” Mr. Lacson said.

During Monday’s hearing, Antonio Bago, a former provincial director of an STL owned by Mr. Pineda, revealed that the alleged gambling lord owned STLs in 11 areas in 2010, including Pampanga.

The other sites were Nueva Ecija; Bulacan; Bataan; Zambales; Olongapo City, Zambales; Santiago City, Isabela; Camarines Sur; Sorsogon and Leyte.

“Congressman (Camarines Sur Rep. Luis Raymund) Villafuerte is right. AACs (auhorized agent corporations or STL) are using their permits to play jueteng,” Mr. Bago said.

Mr. Villafuerte also cited intelligence reports that Mr. Pineda was also operating in Sorsogon and other parts of the country.

Mr. Bago also testified how STL was operated during his time as an STL provincial director. He explained that three of the four STL tickets without a hit are used for jueteng games. When there is a hit, only one in the four tickets is forwarded to PCSO.

He added that STL operators would also manipulate the numbers in the lottery, depending on the reports from the ground. “They are fooling everyone,” he said.

Gaming consultant Charlie “Atong” Ang then asked the Senate panel to invite Mr. Pineda in the next hearing.

Mr. Lacson told PCSO officials: “You are being controlled by one person, not the other way around.”

In an interview with reporters, Remeliza M. Gabuyo, PCSO assistant general manager for branch operations, admitted that the agency still needs to resolve the flaws in monitoring STL operations.

“We have fought illegal groups, we have remitted to government but a lot has to fixed in the operations, admittedly. We are really addressing the problems,” she said. — Camille A. Aguinaldo

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