“Better late than never.”
This was the reaction of Senator-elect Joel Villanueva and outgoing Senate President Vicente Sotto III on President Rodrigo Duterte’s apology for allowing e-sabong.
The President admitted he realized his mistake in allowing e-sabong operations despite reports of bettors finding themselves in heavy debts and cockfight enthusiasts getting abducted.
“We admire his tenacity to stop e-sabong after meticulously studying the ill effects of this online gambling,” Villanueva said.
Villanueva also said e-sabong’s ill effects that can result to irreparable damage to the family and the society have been “exposed.”
Sen. Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa also thanked the President for finally giving more weight on the social costs brought about by e-sabong than the revenue that the government is collecting from it.
“Afterall, revenues lost are recoverable but lives lost are forever gone,” he said.
The former PNP chief further stated “it is never too late.”
“Personally, I am anti-gambling, but I do not want to preempt the decision of the incoming administration,” Dela Rosa said.
He said if the Marcos administration decides to continue e-sabong operations, he assured that the Senate is ready to provide the needed legislation to have online sabong properly regulated and minimize the social costs it may bring.