QC firm: No to STL

Quezon City Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. stood pat in his earlier decision to oppose the move to make Quezon City the pilot area for the revived Small Time Lottery (STL) game.

"Majority of the people in Quezon City oppose STL because there is no jueteng operation in the city," Belmonte told The Star.

There are other areas in the country where the dry-run of the controversial numbers game can be conducted.

Belmonte issued the statement after Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel commended him for his steadfast stand against STL.

In a statement, Pimentel said the Palace, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) should respect the position of the city mayor in opposing the STL, which is based on his firm belief that the government has no business sponsoring and promoting any form of gambling.

He said any form of gambling erodes the moral foundation of the citizens.

Upon Belmonte’s order, the police stopped the operation of STL in Quezon City over the objection of The Benchmark Acquisition International Corp., which was authorized by the PCSO to be its local gaming agent in the city.

Benchmarks’ STL operation was, however, backed by a resolution from the Quezon City Council but Belmonte said the operation was illegal because it has no business permit from his office.

Pimentel, the principal author of the Local Government Code of 1991, said Malacañang should not insist on the STL operation in Quezon City if the decision of the mayor is not to allow it.

He stressed that local government units are autonomous and as such their authority in running their own affairs should not be encroached upon by the national government.

"I am against STL because it means the government has given up the fight against illegal gambling. Its a cop-out. Now, its the government that is acting like a jueteng lord," he said.