Taking a cue from the clear and unequivocal stance of Mayor Dan Lim against the entry of jai alai into the city, the Tagbilaran Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) Friday unanimously passed a resolution opposing the operation of jai alai betting stations. In one of the few occasions that it voted unanimously, city council passed the resolution vehemently opposing the entry of on-line jai alai betting stations in Tagbilaran City and Bohol. The resolution was authored by Councilor Doni Piquero. According to Piquero, there is an imminent move for the entry of on-line jai alai betting stations in Tagbilaran and in some municipalities in the province. “In fat, a station has already been established in one of the municipalities of our province,” Piquero added.

He recalled that jai alai was the precursor of the infamous illegal numbers game called masiao that proliferated in the 80s and 90s “which corrupted the moral fiber of our society, in Bohol and in particular and in the Visayas in general”. The resolution noted that at present authorities have yet to stamp out swertres, an illegal numbers game akin to masiao in Tagbilaran and in Bohol. “Thus, to introduce an off fronton jai alai betting station in our city and province will render our police authorities helpless in combating the illegal numbers game because they could no longer differentiate jai alai from swertres, or which is legal and which is not,” the resolution added. The city councilors stressed that in the world over, gambling is recognized as a vice and a social ill which government must minimize, if not eradicate, in pursuit of social and economic development. “In all its forms, gambling is generally proscribed as offensive to the public morals and the public good,” the measure added.

The councilors said it is their considered view that enticing the people to bet their hard-earned money on gambling is a wrong policy as it gives them a false notion that it could improve their lives if they bet every day, instead of using this money to buy their basic needs. They noted that there are already “so many forms of gambling in our midst” and for the government to sponsor another mass gambling is a sure way to lose every strand of its moral authority over its constituents. “Another gambling is not a solution to illegal gambling,” the measure declared. The anti-jai alai resolution is the first one passed by a legislative body in Bohol in the present administration. This came after Lim publicly declared his opposition to the entry of jai alai in Bohol. He also dared Gov. Edgar Chatto to show sincerity by taking concrete action against the entry of jai alai and not just “pro forma” opposition. “I dare the Boholanos to choose between a gambler who is opposed to the entry of jai alai and a non-gambler who approves of its entry into Bohol,” the mayor said. Copies of the resolution were furnished to Lim, Chatto, members of the provincial board, the bishops of the diocese of Tagbilaran and the diocese of Talibon “for their kind information, guidance and appropriate action”.