Philippine House minority leader proposes anti-gambling” bill”
If implemented this would prohibit the use of any platform within the Philippine territory to facilitate offshore gaming operators
House Minority Leader Bienvenido Abante Jr., on Monday announced that he would submit an “anti-iGaming” bill to completely stop the activities of Philippine offshore iGaming operators in the country.
Abante Jr. made the above remarks after the government allowed iGaming to be partially reopened, although many areas of the Philippines are still under community isolation.
In a privileged speech during the resumption of the House of Representatives meeting, Abante Jr. vigorously expressed his opposition to the operation of iGaming, saying that these operations ‘will not bring any tangible and influential benefits to our country.’
Benny Abante Jr. argues that the iGaming industry has repeatedly and continuously displayed a disregard for the Philippine law.
He expressed disappointment that the operation of iGaming was allowed to continue during the COVID-19 crisis. Most domestic industries were still forced to temporarily shut down and religious activities were still prohibited as well.
Abante Jr. said: ‘The reopening of these iGaming is already disgusting, we have to force the inclusion of iGaming in the business process outsourcing industry,
they said that they are ‘essential services’ and must continue to operate during the strengthening of community isolation . ‘
He added: ‘Why? Does iGaming employ Filipinos? No. Does iGaming engage in necessary services? No. Can the Filippinos make money from this? Not even.’
Abante Jr. argued that the iGaming industry has repeatedly and continuously displayed a disregard for the Philippine law, as well as the Chinese anti- iGaming laws that deported them from their own country.
The parliamentarian said that although he admits that more taxes are needed, he has made a lot of efforts to increase funds to deal with the COVID-19 crisis.
Abante Jr. said: ‘ iGaming is not the solution. We have lost billions of dollars in tax revenue due to corruption and inaction by tax agencies. These are issues that we should address if we hope to obtain more tax revenue to support government actions. ‘
He added: ‘In light of the above arguments, I will propose the Anti-Gambling Act 2020. It is time to shut down all iGaming companies. It is time to throw iGaming into the deep sea. Now is time to say no to iGaming. It’s time. ‘
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