Philippine Gaming Industry
Despite the surge of Pagcor income that has succeeded immensely in supporting the cash-strapped government, several lawmakers, nongovernment organizations and especially the religious sector are still firmly against government engaging in the business of operating casinos.
Edward King, spokesman for Pagcor chairman Efraim Genuino, told The Manila Times that first and foremost, one thing that people should remember is that Pagcor is a creation of law.
Pagcor, a government-owned and controlled corporation was established to regulate all games of chance in the Philippines.
It was born in 1976, created by then-President Marcos to oversee the operation of gaming casinos, to generate funds for the government’s developmental projects and to help curb illegal gambling.
An unaudited Pagcor report shows that Pagcor, “a vital arm of the government in nation building, “ netted P25.4 billion in income making it one of the biggest earners for 2006.”
So is Pagcor a proof that casinos and legalized gaming can be a valuable source of government funding and an effective engine for national development?
“We are created by law, we are just following what the law orders us to do. It is not a question that is up to us to decide. We must obey the law,” King said.
Under the law, he explained, Pagcor is required to run casinos.
He said that the most important thing about the government running casinos is that all funds that generated from Pagcor goes back to the government “100 percent.”
“We are operating the casinos but here is where everything lies: 100 percent of the income that we generate goes back to the government,” King said.
The state-run gaming firm surpassed its earlier record-breaking P21.9-billion total annual income in 2004 and breached its target income of P23.41 billion for 2005. It surpassed the P24.5 billion target for 2006 as well.
Pagcor’s 2005 total income of P23.4 billion was 6.8 percent higher than the P21.9 billion it posted a year
Edward King, spokesman for Pagcor chairman Efraim Genuino, told The Manila Times that first and foremost, one thing that people should remember is that Pagcor is a creation of law.
Pagcor, a government-owned and controlled corporation was established to regulate all games of chance in the Philippines.
It was born in 1976, created by then-President Marcos to oversee the operation of gaming casinos, to generate funds for the government’s developmental projects and to help curb illegal gambling.
An unaudited Pagcor report shows that Pagcor, “a vital arm of the government in nation building, “ netted P25.4 billion in income making it one of the biggest earners for 2006.”
So is Pagcor a proof that casinos and legalized gaming can be a valuable source of government funding and an effective engine for national development?
“We are created by law, we are just following what the law orders us to do. It is not a question that is up to us to decide. We must obey the law,” King said.
Under the law, he explained, Pagcor is required to run casinos.
He said that the most important thing about the government running casinos is that all funds that generated from Pagcor goes back to the government “100 percent.”
“We are operating the casinos but here is where everything lies: 100 percent of the income that we generate goes back to the government,” King said.
The state-run gaming firm surpassed its earlier record-breaking P21.9-billion total annual income in 2004 and breached its target income of P23.41 billion for 2005. It surpassed the P24.5 billion target for 2006 as well.
Pagcor’s 2005 total income of P23.4 billion was 6.8 percent higher than the P21.9 billion it posted a year