One way or another, the drama surrounding the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) and the small-town lottery (STL) operators that were shut down by presidential orders appears to be wrapping up. The Manila Bulletin reports that 19 STL affiliates have now complied with the demands of the government, and are set to re-start their lotteries.
The Authorized Agent Corporations (AACs), as they are known locally, had to pay millions in deposits, bonds, and unpaid remittances to satisfy the government after wide-spread corruption accusations were leveled against them in July. Those accusations forced President Rodrigo Duterte to pause all PCSO gambling operations, including the STLs.
Royina Garma, PCSO General Manager, has declared that now over PHP 1 billion ($19 million) in fees. Have now been collected from the AACs.
That treasure chest of fees was calculated for each operator based on the expected presumptive monthly retail receipts (PMRR) of each region, a number determined by multiplying a PHP2.5 peso bet by the province’s registered voters.
Despite paying these fees, the AACs are not allowed to legally begin operating just yet. Garma warned that while Duterte has lifted the ban on STLs, he has still not signed off on the new regulations that would allow compliant AACs to begin operation.
Garma also warned that if STLs have already re-started their lotteries without paying fees, they’re in big trouble. I sent a letter to [the head of police] informing him that none of our STL agents have been authorized to operate again,” she told the media. “So, if anyone is operating now, it would be illegal to use them and the police can arrest them.”
Not all AACs have been able to pay their dues just yet though. Recently, the legal counsel of Red Subay Gaming Corp complained that his region’s PMRR calculation seemed grossly unfair when compared to the home province of the President. While both regions have similar populations, Red Subay is being asked to pay much more to government coffers.
So while STL operations haven’t legally resumed yet, it appears the whole operation, and whatever drama and secrets that it may contain, could start up again in a moment’s notice.
