Sunday, April 6, 2008 [ philstar.com ]
Malacañang yesterday expressed confidence that the government would be able to justify the operation of the Tourism City being developed by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) at the reclamation area in Parañaque City.
But Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) president and Jaro, Iloilo Archbishop Angel Lagdameo said he has a “good and not so good” impression of the project, adding he hopes for the best but maintains that the Church’s position is still against all forms of gambling.
Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye, however, said that the early opposition and concerns raised by various sectors, particularly religious groups, to the project is nothing new when it comes to these types of undertakings.
Bunye said the government would prefer to look at the issue from a wider perspective, which includes the significant amount of assistance that is being provided to the needy from the operations of Pagcor’s casinos.
“We know that the operations have helped a lot of people. As a matter of fact, there are many people who normally go to my office seeking help for their families and we have helped a lot of people using these funds,” he said.
Pagcor is developing a 90-hectare facility in the reclamation area in Parañaque City for what is intended to be a Las Vegas-style entertainment center.
Apart from casinos, Pagcor would also construct hotels, shopping malls, cultural centers, sports arenas, residential villages and theme parks.
Concerns have immediately been raised that the facility, because of the presence of casinos, would raise a lot of moral questions because it would promote gambling.
Bunye said he believes the benefits brought about by the gaming operations of Pagcor far outweigh the disadvantages, including the moral issues involved in gambling.
“I think we have to look at the total picture. We have to look at how these funds are being utilized. For as long as they are utilized properly, for as long as they are able to help a lot of Filipinos, then we believe we can justify the operations,” Bunye said.
Based on the mandate of Pagcor, most of its revenues are used to finance the social services of the government such as medical assistance.
In spite of the opposition raised by several church leaders against the operation of casinos in the country, the government has maintained these because of the benefits derived from its revenues.
Tough Church stand
But despite the good publicity Pagcor is trying to generate for the $15-billion Bagong Nayong Pilipino-Manila Bay Integrated City, it has still failed to fully convince the Catholic Church.
“The project has undergone some shifts in presentation in order to gain acceptability in a Catholic culture: from gambling city to entertainment city to tourism city. Definitely with so much money at their disposal, it will be all three: gambling, entertainment and tourism. And only the future will tell which will be the dominant one,” Lagdameo told cbcpnews.com.
The gaming corporation is projecting that the Tourism City would be filled with shopping malls, hotels, museums, cultural center, sports arena, park and residential villages.
Pagcor chairman and chief executive officer Efraim Genuino earlier said only five percent of the 90-hectare property would be used for gambling.
Some 250,000 people would be hired during the construction and its actual operation. It would be completed in two years.
Lagdameo also clarified that the CBCP maintains its earlier stand on gambling, whether legal or illegal, and that it is still against it.
Those financially challenged are oftentimes lured into spending meager finances on gambling, hoping for a big pay-off, thus adversely affecting their families, he said.
“We advocate the adoption of more altruistic and socialized alternatives for the great sum of money spent by both rich and poor on gambling. While it is true that games of chance are not in themselves contrary to justice, the passion for gambling risks becoming an enslavement which results in the deprivation of people of what they need,” the CBCP president added.
He said the presence of three retired bishops during the groundbreaking ceremony last Thursday afternoon was their way of blessing, hoping and praying that everything would turn out for the good of the people and the country. They did not give their blessing to gambling, he added.
Three Roman Catholic emeritus bishops – Manuel Sobrevias of Imus, Cavite; Maximo Cruz of Calbayog, Samar; and Cirilo Almario Jr. of Malolos Bulacan – graced the groundbreaking the other day.
Fisherfolk also defiant
Meanwhile, the Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) yesterday urged the CBCP to make an immediate stand against the project, that according to them would trigger the displacement of small fishermen.
In a statement, Pamalakaya said fishermen along Manila Bay’s coastal areas from Pasay to Cavite would be dislodged to give way to the project in order to provide amenities to potential bettors and guests coming from abroad and other parts of the country.
The group said the project seeks to transform Manila Bay, a declared fishing area, into the “newest gambling Mecca” in Asia and will prompt the demolition of fisherfolk communities in Pasay, Las Piñas, Parañaque and Cavite coastal towns from Bacoor to Cavite City.
“The fishermen need livelihood; the people want fish, not slot machines, gambling cards or spinning wheels. We want to become the food basket of Asia, not to become the Las Vegas of Asia,” Pamalakaya said.
Pamalakaya national chairman Fernando Hicap also expressed fear that the government would eventually ban fishing in Manila Bay, among other consequences of allowing the super casino.
Hicap noted that close to one million coastal people in Metro Manila and Cavite are still dependent on fishing as principal source of livelihood, and any move to transform or convert Manila Bay for other purposes would clearly threaten their livelihood. – With Evelyn Macairan and Katherine Adraneda
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