Online casinos also thriving at CEZA, says bishop

MANILA, Philippines – Aside from the importation of second-hand luxury right-hand drive vehicles, another business is thriving at Port Irene in Sta. Ana, Cagayan – online casinos.

Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said that he received information that there are Internet gaming operations at Port Irene.

Cruz has been waging war against gambling and founded the Krusadang Bayan Laban sa Jueteng (KBLJ) in 2004.

“There are about 145 gambling cabins and they plan to build 400 more. This is catering to online gambling wherein the betting is placed there, but the bettors are somewhere else, and the winnings are sent to the respective bank accounts of the winners,” he said.

He said the casinos cater to high rollers and offer standard games such as roulette, blackjack, poker and slot machines through the Internet.

However, the 73-year-old archbishop admitted that at present, he only has limited information on the gaming establishments in the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA).

He said he would still have to find out when the businesses opened and how much these gaming establishments earn.

“We do not really know who is running it, but this is definitely within Port Irene. Who owns it is still not known... But some say that since it is within the zone, they could freely run casinos,” he said.

The Pangasinan prelate said that even the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) has denied any involvement in the online casino operations.

“They are supposed to pay the government direct tax, but we don’t have the records yet,” he said.

But while Pagcor requires online gambling establishments in other parts of the country to coordinate with it, those who operate casinos in Port Irene reportedly need not get a license from Pagcor.

Meanwhile, thousands of residents of Sta. Ana town and nearby areas in Cagayan are in danger of losing their jobs if the Supreme Court declares illegal the importation and sale of second-hand cars through Port Irene in the CEZA.

Mayor Vic Rodriguez, whose town hosts the CEZA, said any negative decision by the High Court will have grave consequences on his town’s economic welfare since this would mean thousands of his town mates would suddenly become unemployed.

“Not only those directly employed by the car importers and right-hand drive converters will be affected, but also those indirectly benefiting from the business in the freeport since this means less business for them,” he said. – Evelyn Macairan and Charlie Lagasca