Laws

Crusade Against Jueteng

An old Chinese adage says, “Evil prevails when good men fail to act.” After the People Power Revolution of 1986, the “good men” of the People Power were put out to pasture and the Filipinos reverted to the old ways. Corruption intensified, creeping into all levels of government. For the past two years in a row, the Philippines was labeled as the most corrupt country in Asia. And poverty — notwithstanding a rosy picture painted by President Gloria Arroyo six months ago — is spreading like wild fire. A recent survey showed that seven out of 10 Filipinos cannot afford to buy food nor pay for their electric bill.

Yet, when Filipinos were asked why they’re not doing anything to alleviate their misery, a majority of them said say that they had given up hope. They believe that the Philippines is hopelessly corrupt and the leaders are just out for themselves. Their only hope is to leave their forsaken motherland and start a new life in a foreign land. Indeed, each year more than one million Filipinos leave the Philippines to seek a better life elsewhere. Most Filipinos in particular women with college degrees who couldn’t find work at home were forced to seek jobs abroad as domestic workers, many of them leaving their young children with relatives.

A large majority of poor people turn to jueteng as the only way — if they’re lucky — to break loose from the clutches of poverty. Jueteng provides them with a glimmer of hope that they could have a taste of the “good life” even for just a day. Yes, just a day of “good life” because nobody has ever gotten out of poverty by winning in this game of chance. And like the deadly red tide, the jueteng lords are eating away the poor people’s meager livelihood. It is estimated that the jueteng lords take about P400 million a day. That’s a whopping P15 billion a year.

Recently, Governor Eduardo “Among Ed” Panlilio of Pampanga filed a plunder case against Rodolfo “Bong” Pineda — the reputed “Jueteng King” — before the Office of the Ombudsman. The basis for the complaint was Pineda’s association with deposed President Joseph “Erap” Estrada. According to Gov. Panlilio, “any person who participated with said public officer in the commission of an offense contributing to the crime of plunder shall likewise be punished for such offense.” The documents submitted by Among Ed stated: “Those liable for plunder clearly include those persons, associates, or subordinates, like respondent Bong Pineda, who contributed in former President Joseph Estrada’s accumulation of wealth—according to the Sandiganbayan, as it has been proven during the trial, respondent Bong Pineda collected and delivered on a regular or monthly basis, jueteng-protection money, said the document says.”

Among Ed’s crusade against corruption and jueteng was the reason why he ran for governor of Pampanga. Now that he is the governor, he is faced with opposition from all sides of the political arena. Like the biblical David, Among Ed is battling not just a Goliath but an army of Goliaths — the Vice Governor, the provincial board members, the mayors, and the powerful jueteng empire of Pineda. Pineda has strong ties to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, his town mate and the godmother to his son, Dennis. Dennis is now the mayor of Lubao and his wife is the mayor of Santa Rita.

Among Ed would be considered the underdog should he decide to run for re-election in 2010. His election in 2007 in which he defeated Pineda’s wife Lilia and the incumbent Governor Mark Lapid in a three-way contest was deemed a “miracle.” In 2010, Among Ed needs a bigger miracle because he’d most likely be facing Mikey Arroyo, the heir to Gloria’s “Enchanted Kingdom.”

Indeed, the Goliaths are already working to remove Among Ed from office. Last April 4, 2008, Vice Governor Joseller Guiao and 10 provincial board members filed graft charges against Among Ed. Not long after that, seven Pampanga mayors signed a manifesto in support of the graft charges against Among Ed. Meanwhile, there were talks of an impending recall bid to unseat Among Ed. Among Ed, who had just completed his first year in office last June 30, indicated that if the recall bid is pushed through, he is ready to fight. Could one good man prevail over the ominous forces? Absolutely!