Secretary Mar Roxas has given direct instructions to the PNP and the local officials to eradicate jueteng in Pampanga and Central Luzon specifically and in the rest of the country where the numbers game still exists or even if it does not exist according to official reports given to him.
He gave these instructions with Among Ed Panlilio sitting with him at the head table and Governor Nanay Baby Pineda in front of him in the audience.
Both, to their credit, acting or otherwise, maintained their poker faces in stoic fashion.
The police officials were more in denial but accomodating to following the orders of their boss whether acting or not. Now it becomes clearer why Mar Roxas lost to Vice President Jojo Binay.
At least, we may admire Secretary Mar for his guts and legal consistency whether due to his moral values or political reasons. At most, he has shown greater clarity than his president, President Noy Noy, who has declared that jueteng is not his priority or concern.
Jue (flower) teng (bet), according to Wikipedia, originated from the Chinese. One bets on a pair of numbers from 1 to 38.
If your numbers come out in a lottery of sort or chosen in the mind of the operator, one wins a large amount compared to the bet. A bet of Php 1.00 may win a sum of around Php 400.00 , depending upon the operator, place and total bets placed for the particular lottery.
There are usually 2 lotteries per day, one in the afternoon and one in the evening. The bets are collected by “cobradors” who go from house to house and person to person.
The small bets allowed with virtually no maximum limit, the convenient access to placing a bet and the chance of immediately winning a large amount has made jueteng very popular among Filipinos, irrespective of social and economic class.
Jueteng has become embedded into the fabric of existence and daily entertainment of the Filipino. It brings hope and dreams on a daily accessible basis.
What are the chances of winning? Picking 2 numbers from 1 to 38 yields long odds.
The Combination formula to be used to determine these odds is n!/ (n – r)! r! = C(n,r), which is the total number of combinations of n objects taken r at a time. In this case, 38!/(38-36)!2! is equal to 703 possible pairs.
One picks one pair of numbers to win against a possible 703 pairs of outcomes! This is quite a long shot and that is why the winning numbers can be paid a high payoff.
Still the odds favor the house/ operator significantly.
And that is also why substantial “ intelligencia” or bribes can be allocated and regularly paid to the officials who should be preventing and catching what is now an illegal activity.
This is a very lucrative enterprise and business model.
Being illegal but allowed to operate with impunity has bred economic rent and a new class of entrepreneurial and economic class and politicians and power brokers.
The kind that economic rent gives birth to and perpetuates. The kind who do not practice good business governance much less understand it.
It breeds a culture of patronage, quick gain, lack of productive output, misuse of resources and even violence. With all these resources, the great danger is that we may deteriorate in the other dimensions of our national life.
The gaming cities of the world, Macau, Las Vegas, Monaco, and others are legal, controlled, regulated and restricted to their specific areas.
Jueteng is uncontrolled and is allowed to proliferate in accordance with the worst aspects of free enterprise. Hopefully, it doesnot permeate and swallow all other areas of our culture and lives.
With jueteng being kept illegal or substituted by the Small Town Lottery which further provides a cover for its continued operations, is it realistic or viable to eradicate it successfully?
Even Jose Rizal placed bets in the lottery. He won , by the way. Is gaming or gambling really an intrinsic part of the human.
The Roman soldiers played dice at the foot of the cross, for the poor belongings of the crucified Christ. From the beginnings of time, we find archeological digs with gambling paraphernalia.
Man has needs and wants. This is what gives rise to the demand for goods and services. This demand “pulls” the production of these goods and services which gives rise to their supply.
The demand pull and supply push interact to create a market place and price for these goods and services.
This is the basic framework for all economies to make the economic decisions for any economic system: what to produce; how to produce; and, for whom to produce.
If a good or service/product is needed and/or wanted, then all these artificial restraints and prohibitions , based on historical experience, will not work.
The Americans learned this lesson during their Prohibition. The banning of the production, sale and consumption of liquor simply gave rise to their gangland mobsters and businesses.
What about products which are not socially desirable? Let us cite the case of drugs and prostitution, and even cigarettes and pornography. It may be agreed that these should be totally banned.
Some may disagree and would argue for control and regulation. In both cases, It will be a very difficult undertaking. Obviously, the proposed solutions are attacking the end result or consequences of the problem.
In the case of jueteng, with apologies to Arch. Cruz, like the poor, jueteng or its equivalent will always be with us.
Even if there were no poor, it will still be with us. Until the demands for jueteng and the determinants of that demand are addressed. We all know what those determinants are.
The Church, schools, parents, society and goverment all share in changing the culture and values of the Filipino. Gambling happens because there is a demand for it.
The determinants for this demand may be the need for excitement, entertainment, need to win large amounts, easy access and many other factors. If the demand is not there, there will be no supply.
The economics will not be there. Is this possible? There are people who do not gamble. It is boring to them and a waste of productive time. The Mormons do not gamble. Jueteng will not prosper there.
Howard Hughes preferred Mormons to be his executives. He allegedly said, “ They don’t gamble, smoke, drink or cheat. What more do you want?”
In the meantime, the officials will go on wasting resources running after the jueteng operations.
Let us explore other altenatives both in the short and long run. The basic reference must be feasiblity. Inspite of the deadline given to stop the jueteng operations, “flower betting” will still be around.
Wanna bet?
