Manila 6th District Representative Benny Abante Jr. welcomed the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ (BSP) directive ordering e-wallet operators to remove in-app links to online gambling, calling it “much-needed victory” in the camping against gambling, but warning that “the war is far from over.”
“This is a win for those of us who have been fighting to protect our people from the scourge of gambling,” Abante said.
“But it is just that—one win, one battle. We should not stop until we have won the war,” the veteran legislator said.
The seasoned lawmaker, a long-time advocate for stronger anti-gambling measures, reiterated to the deep social costs of gambling addiction, which he said ruins families, fuels criminality, and traps individuals in cycles of debt and despair.
According to the pastor-solon, “we have ample evidence that tells us that gambling destroys lives. That it is not a harmless pastime, but a vice that preys on the vulnerable, especially the poor.”
“The only real solution is to ban it outright.”
“The social costs of online gambling far outweigh any so-called economic benefits. So regulation is not the answer, because you cannot regulate away the harm. The only real solution is to ban it outright,” he stressed.
Quoting 1 Corinthians 15:58, Abante reminded anti-gambling advocates to keep up the pressure against online gaming as this is “God’s work.”
“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”
“Progress is possible if we continue to put pressure on our policymakers.”
“This order from the BSP is encouraging because it shows that progress is possible if we continue to put pressure on our policymakers,” Abante said.
“But if we grow weary, if we think one victory means the fight is over, then the forces that profit from this vice will win. We must remain vigilant, steadfast, and united in this war against gambling,” he added.
