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Total online gambling ban may drive operators to go underground: Akbayan

Agatha Gregorio

RG Cruz

ABS-CBN News

<p>MANILA — With some bills filed for a total ban on online gambling, Akbayan party-list Rep. Chel Diokno said these measures could drive gambling platforms going underground.</p><p>Diokno, an author of the &quot;Kontra E-Sugal&quot; bill, proposes regulation or limiting access instead of a total ban.</p><p>He said he believes this will be a point of debate at the Senate and at the House of Representatives.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/technology/2025/7/15/gov-t-urged-use-ai-to-stop-kids-from-accessing-online-gambling-sites-1710">Gov&#x27;t urged: Use AI to stop kids from accessing online gambling</a></div><p>“‘[M]as mahihirapan ang pamahalaan na sugpuin ‘yung problema (The government will have a harder time addressing the problem),” Diokno said of a total ban.</p><p>“If we can see them and closely monitor and regulate them, ang pananaw ng Akbayan ay mas praktikal na solusyon ‘yun (Akbayan sees that as a more practical solution). This is something that I’m sure will be discussed on the floor,” Diokno added.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>VILLANUEVA WANTS TOTAL BAN</strong></div><p>Sen. Joel Villanueva meanwhile said he will push for a national ban on online gambling, which he has called a &quot;growing national crisis&quot; and that he said is worse than Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators.</p><p>POGOs have been banned but smaller &quot;guerrilla&quot; operations still exist.<strong></strong></p><p>“Yung online gambling is worse, far worse than e-sabong,&quot; he also said, referring to online betting on cockfighting, which has also been banned.</p><p>(Online gambling is worse, far worse than e-sabong)</p><p>He compared online gambling to quicksand that would eventually swallow up the country.</p><p>“[T]hat’s why we have been espousing the banning of online gambling since time immemorial,” he added.</p><p>Villanueva previously filed Senate Bill 47, or the Anti-Online Gambling Act, which penalizes bettors, bookies, and facilitators of online gambling with imprisonment from one to six months, or a fine of not less than P100,000 nor more than P500,000.</p><p>Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Alejandro Tengco has said revenue from online gambling reached P50 billion in 2024, but Villanueva said revenue cannot justify the social cost.</p><p>“We are destroying the moral fiber of our society,” he said, adding he hopes President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. will address the issue in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 28. </p><p>Tengco has said they prefer stricter regulation, which is why he has ordered the dismantling of gambling related advertisements such as those on billboards and buses. </p><p>PAGCOR will also restrict gambling ads on television during prime time or from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. </p><p>“I don’t think it’s enough. I really think we have to ban online gambling if we want to start yung clean slate,” Villanueva said. </p><div> </div><div><strong>DIOKNO WANTS SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION ON &#x27;MISSING SABUNGEROS&#x27;</strong></div><p>Diokno also said there should be a more scientific approach in investigating the &quot;missing sabungeros case&quot; and human remains being found in Taal Lake following a whistleblower’s statement on victims being dumped into the body of water.</p><p>According to Diokno, an independent forensics laboratory outside the Philippine National Police’s (PNP) chain of command should be established for this.</p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2025/7/15/rov-deployed-in-search-for-missing-cockfighters-in-taal-lake-1626">ROV detects &#x27;suspicious object&#x27; in lakebed of Taal as search for &#x27;sabungeros&#x27; continues</a></div><p>“Naandiyan ang mga taga-academe. Para sure tayo na kung maglalabas sila ng mga findings at conclusions, we can be sure that they are based on science,” Diokno added. </p><p>(We have people in the academe. That way, we can be sure findings and conclusions are based on science)</p><p>Diokno said that In his experience as a lawyer and human rights defender, he has encountered many cases that rely solely on testimony.</p><p>He  stressed a witness’s statement may change, while scientific facts cannot.</p>

<p>“If we can see them and closely monitor and regulate them, ang pananaw ng Akbayan ay mas praktikal na solusyon ‘yun,” Diokno added.</p>

“If we can see them and closely monitor and regulate them, ang pananaw ng Akbayan ay mas praktikal na solusyon ‘yun,” Diokno added.

Ban on online gambling may just drive operators underground — Akbayan

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Ban on online gambling may just drive operators underground — Akbayan

Agatha Gregorio,

RG Cruz,

ABS-CBN News

Published Jul 16, 2025 04:57 PM PHT

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Updated Jul 16, 2025 07:09 PM PHT

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ANC Promo

Akbayan

Chel Diokno

Online gambling

House of Representatives

Missing sabungero

Taal Lake

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