PAMPANGA, PHILIPPINES - Local religious authorities in the town of Bacolor in Pampanga, a province in Central Luzon in the Philippines, are enraged with the operation of a gambling facility in their area.
Pampanga Archbishop Paciano Aniceto has called on the Philippine Amusement Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) to immediately halt the operation of a casino facility located within the King's Royal Hotel and Leisure Park in Bacolor. The casino is being operated by Blue Chip Gaming and Leisure Corporation (Blue Chip).
According to the archbishop, the state-run gaming agency has reneged on an unwritten agreement with the archdiocese of Pampanga made in 1997 whereby both parties agreed to make Pampanga casino-free except in two areas: Clark, Pampanga (a former US military base) and at the old PAGCOR building in Angeles City.
The archbishop further stated that the agreement emerged after the previous governor of Pampanga, actor Lito Lapid, and PAGCOR approached the archdiocese in 1997 to discuss the possibility of a casino facility in the Paskuhan Village.
The new casino facility in Bacolor opened last October 17, some 16 months after the town's councilors approved the project.
Church Opposition
The Archdiocese of San Fernando and the Archdiocesan Council of the Laity (ACL) are leading protests against the operation of the casino at the hotel by hanging tarpaulin streamers condemning the project.
Local church leaders have alleged that proponents of the project have rushed the project to avoid any opposition from the church.
It was also reported that San Guillermo Parish priest Fr. Jess Manabat had snubbed the invitation of the facility to officiate its blessing last October 17.
Provincial Government Unaware
Pampanga Governor Eddie Panlilio, also a Roman Catholic priest, also questioned the operation of the casino facility.
In a letter to PAGCOR Chairman Efraim Genuino dated October 16, the governor stated that the casino was put up "without the knowledge and authorization of the provincial government."
He has asked PAGCOR to halt the opening of the casino but the facility opened anyway as scheduled.
Not a Full Casino, Local Execs Ok with Project
In a letter to Governor Panlilio dated October 30, PAGCOR VP for Corporate and Legal Services Department Carlos Bautista, Jr. however said that the operation at King's Royal Hotel was "not a full casino setup" but only slot machines were present.
The facility was acted upon the request of the hotel's owner, one Melchor Caluag, who wrote to Bacolor Mayor Romeo Dungca, Jr. early in 2008 and signified his intent "of putting up a Poker Club, which includes slot machines and poker tables within the vicinity of the King’s Royal Hotel and Leisure Park, that is converting the spacious function rooms into a gaming hall.”
In June 24, 2008, Resolution No. 71-2008, approving the establishment of the gaming facility, was unanimously passed by the town's council.
Bacolor is a 4th-class municipality in the province of Pampanga.
Sourced from the Philippine Daily Inquirer
