CEBU's public was shocked to learn that four policemen in active service and one dismissed were behind the brutal February 13 robbery and murder of Maria Louela Baringui-an, a barangay (village) councilor and candidate for municipal councilor, and her husband, Peter, in the town of San Fernando, Cebu. Equally shocking was it to read about Laguna PPat. Glenn Angoluan, who robbed several convenience stores in order to pay his growing debt. The debt reportedly had reached about P1 million and stemmed from the policeman's addiction to off-site betting on cockfights aired online, the so-called e-sabong.
E-sabong is the government's latest golden-egg laying hen with the fading glory of POGOs (Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators). The billions of pesos that the government is already making on online cockfighting are obviously revenues badly needed after two years of the pandemic. As Jose Rizal sarcastically said in Noli Me Tangere, vice pays for its freedom by funding schools, bridges and highways. "Blessed be the vice which produces such bountiful results!"
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