Pangasinan cop chief to be quizzed on jueteng

DAGUPAN CITY — The provincial board is set to summon Senior Superintendent Arturo Cacdac Jr., provincial police director, to shed light on the reported resurgence of jueteng in Pangasinan.

Vice Gov. Oscar Lambino told dzSD Super Radyo Dagupan yesterday that he would personally ask the board’s secretariat to schedule a question hour during their Feb. 14 session and to invite Cacdac to explain reports about the revival of the illegal numbers game in the province.

"I will initiate an inquiry in fairness to everybody," said Lambino, presiding officer of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan.

He was referring to reports that certain provincial officials had received bribes from the supposed new jueteng operator in Pangasinan.

Lambino said, "We give him (Cacdac) our trust until such time he can no longer function as we expect him to, then we will do what is necessary."

He said he would ask Cacdac to give them an update on the anti-jueteng campaign of the provincial police.

Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz, a staunch anti-jueteng advocate, issued last Monday another statement which he entitled the "Jueteng Plague."

Cruz, former president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, said the "poor become poorer, the rich become even richer, and the authorities become incapable with all the law at their command, with all the power in their hands."

He said this is what jueteng does even in the otherwise peaceful province of Pangasinan.

Cruz said the multisectoral national crusade against jueteng is active. "But where are those in government? The casinos are evil enough. Must we still add... the vice of jueteng?"

He said that he hears time and again resolves to fight corruption, promises to put corrupt people behind bars, speeches to cleanse the ranks of those in public service from corrupt and corrupting practices.

"If the country, the provinces and the municipalities cannot be cleansed of an open and plain illegal activity such as jueteng, ridiculous are those resolves, empty are those promises, and vain are those speeches," Cruz said.

He said Senate Bills No. 2083 and 2091, filed by Senators Robert Barbers and Noli de Castro, respectively, have the full support and endorsement of the national crusade called "Jueteng-Free Philippines."

Meanwhile, lawyer Virgilio Solis, provincial administrator, said that except from media reports, they are not aware that the illegal numbers game has resurfaced in the province.

"Ang alam namin wala ng jueteng pero sa media sabi nila one week na daw meron uli (What we know is that there’s no more jueteng but according to the media, it has been back for a week now)," Solis said.

For his part, Cacdac said in a text message that they "are validating the information" and that there has been "no let-up in our drive against gambling."