Sen. Joel Villanueva's Opening Statement
Senate Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs Hearing on the Rising Number of Missing Persons Allegedly Involved In "Sabong" And "E-Sabong" Related Incidents Based On News Reports

Maganda at mapagpalang araw po sa ating lahat.

Mr. Chairman, I would just like to share my two cents on the abduction of at least 29 people, hailing from Manila, Laguna, and even my home province of Bulacan because of their involvement in gambling activities.

Hindi po ito ang unang beses na nangyari ang ganitong insidente. The 29 missing individuals are just the latest casualties. Napanood ko po sa isang news ang isang video kung saan nakuha sa CCTV ang pagdakip sa isang residente ng San Pablo, Laguna. Nagpanggap na mga NBI agent ang nag-issue ng warrant of arrest. The victim was reported to be a master agent of online sabong and was accused of game fixing.

Mr. Chairman, I leave it to the proper authorities to determine the specific motives and reasons behind these disappearances. Ang obvious lang po sa atin eh malinaw na ang sanhi nito ay sugal.

The records will bear us out na nasa Kamara pa lang po tayo ay ipinapaliwanag na natin sa ating mga kababayan kung bakit hindi makabubuti ang sugal sa ating bayan.

Una, kabaligtaran po ng lahat ng pagpapahalagang Pilipino (Filipino values) ang pagsusugal. How can we teach our youth to be industrious and to take their study seriously if gambling is rampant or by giving them the false hopes that the "game of chance" can actually improve lives?

Recently, a 19-year-old student in Davao de Oro was arrested by the police after he was unable to pay more than P500,000 in bet money for online sabong.[1] Other students have resorted to stealing from their parents to play, some of whom are minors.[2] There is also a reported incident involving a Quezon City police officer who robbed an LBC branch in San Miguel, Bulacan.[3]

Sayang naman po ang investments natin sa education and training kung mababalewala lang sa dahil iisipin ng mga kabataan na shortcut sa pag-asenso ang sugal.

Pangalawa, ipinapakita ng rising number of missing persons allegedly involved in gambling na napakataas ng "social costs" ng sugal.

In a news article written by Ms. Susan Ople of the Blas F. Ople Policy Center and Training Institute, she cited the circumstances of several of our OFWs who placed bets online with payments done electronically. She stated that Labor Attaché Resty dela Fuente flagged online gambling as an emerging concern among OFWs.[4]

The list goes on with stories of bankruptcy, broken families, and other criminal activities as a result of gambling.

There's also this 2011 study at Baylor University in Texas[5] stating that the social costs for each pathological gambler is $9,393 per year or almost half a million pesos kapag pinagsama-sama 'yung nagagastos sa pag-solve ng krimen, adjudication, lost job productivity, unemployment insurance, therapy and treatment costs, suicide, social services costs, at iba pa.

Pangatlo, and in relation to my second point, na-establish na po ng maraming pag-aaral na ang pathological gambling is a mental disease. Kahit po ang World health Organization, kinlassify ang pathological gambling na isang sakit.

Ano po ang mga sintomas? Debts and lies. From these two symptoms, where to? Broken marriage, dysfunctional family, children dropping out from school, infidelity, domestic violence, kidnapping?

Mr. Chairman, this public hearing is very timely because it's about time we wake up to the downsides of gambling and discuss its ill effects especially during these times of major health and economic woes. Of course, we should also exert all efforts to locate the 29 missing individuals, save their lives and return them to their families and loved ones.

Trabaho po at hindi sugal o ang pagtaya sa sabong ang magbibigay ng oportunidad sa mga Pilipino. Ito po ang dahilan kaya nandirito tayo ngayon dahil trabaho ang trabaho natin. Hindi po tayo papayag na mabalewala ito dahil sa sugal na hindi naman oportunidad kundi panganib ang hatid sa ating mga kababayan.

God bless us all.

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[1] https://mindanaotimes.com.ph/2021/10/27/student-19-arrested-after-failing-to-pay-p561-k-for-online-sabong/

[2] https://tnt.abante.com.ph/kandidatong-pabor-sa-e-sabong-huwag-iboto-bro-eddie/

[3] https://mb.com.ph/2021/05/26/huge-debt-due-to-online-sabong-prompts-qc-police-to-rob-lbc-branch-in-bulacan/

[4] https://businessmirror.com.ph/2021/10/06/emerging-threat-to-ofws-mental-and-financial-health-online-sabong/

[5] https://www.baylor.edu/content/services/document.php/145417.pdf