MANILA (LiCAS News): “We are doomed — unless we wake up,” Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David of Kalookan, said, issuing a scathing critique of the Philippine government’s handling of online gambling, calling it a “theatre of the absurd” and accusing officials of moral negligence in allowing widespread access to betting platforms.
In a social media post on June 30, said that the government is complicit in exposing children and families to the dangers of gambling addiction by legalising online platforms that are accessible around the clock, even to minors.
The cardinal was responding to a recent news report in which state gambling regulator Pagcor warned the public against illegal offshore gambling websites claiming to be licensed by the agency. In 2024, the administration of president, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., banned all Philippine offshore gaming operators, or POGOs, which proliferated under the previous administration.
“Who needs to sneak into a high-end casino when the casino has been brought into every living room, every bedroom, every child’s pocket — right there on the glowing screen of a smartphone?” Cardinal David asked.
The cardinal criticised Philippine authorities for focusing on offshore gambling sites while ignoring the consequences of locally licensed platforms.
He also condemned celebrities and influencers for promoting gambling apps on social media, saying they “prostitute themselves for a fee” in service of “conscience-less billionaires.”
Cardinal David expressed deep concern over the impact on Filipino families, especially children of overseas Filipino workers who may be using hard-earned remittances to gamble online.
“Goodbye studies. Goodbye decent jobs. Goodbye the hope of hardworking families,” he said. “And hello—hello to a whole generation of gambling addicts.”
The cardinal warned that unless the country urgently addresses the issue, it risks “sacrificing an entire generation on the altar of easy profit.”
