‘No selective areas in jueteng drive’

Chief Superintendent Manuel Cabigon, head of the Task Force Jericho, laughed off accusations yesterday that he was selective of his targets in his intensified anti-jueteng drive in the country.

"We are going after all jueteng joints regardless of their area of operations," Cabigon told The Star. "It so happens that the reports we are receiving are from a certain area so we conducted raids immediately to encourage more cooperation from the public."

Reports claimed that a group of policemen complained to Interior Secretary Joey Lina that Cabigon is targetting only certain provinces or a particular place while other areas where jueteng is rampant were left untouched. But Lina gave his full support to Cabigon.

Cabigon admitted he gained a large number of enemies since he started his intensified anti-jueteng drive in the provinces, especially in areas which were left untouched by former Jericho agents.

"I’d like to make it clear that I’m only carrying out the directives of Secretary Lina," Cabigon said in an interview. "We have no hidden agenda here."

Cabigon said that right after Jericho received information from the public, he made it a point to inform police officials concerned to act on the presence of jueteng and other forms of illegal gambling in his jurisdiction. "I’ll ask the police officials to conduct an honest-to-goodness raid. But once he ignores us then it’s about time for Jericho to act," said Cabigon.

Camp Crame sources said Cabigon called up recently Chief Superintendent Pedro Bulaong, Manila police chief, and informed him of the mushrooming video karera and racehorse bookies operations in his area. Bulaong reportedly told Cabigon that Manila was cleared by him of all forms of illegal gambling.

When Cabigon’s men swooped down in Manila, especially in Tondo, last week, they succeeded in confiscating video karera machines owned by Boboy Go. Jericho agents also successfully raided a number of racehorse bookie joints of Oscar Simbulan alias Boy Abang and his partner, a certain Lorna.

Because of Cabigon’s relentless campaign, Melchor Caluag, alias Ngongo, a gambling lord based in Pampanga, the home province of President Arroyo, is reportedly moving heaven and earth to stop Jericho from conducting more raids against his jueteng operations.

Caluag, who reportedly drops the name of First Gentleman Mike Arroyo in his illegal business, was arrested and jailed at the height of Lina’s anti-jueteng campaign last year. He was released after shelling out low bail money.

Despite his heavyweight padrinos, however, Cabigon raided recently Caluag’s jueteng operations in Pampanga and Tarlac thereby hurting his illegal business.

Cabigon has been reshuffling his men to prevent them from getting acquainted with gambling lords or their trusted lieutenants. He is also unfazed by reports that gambling lords, deeply hurt by his relentless operations, are initiating massive smear campaign against Jericho to harrass them. "This is a very difficult job I’m in," said Cabigon.