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Tuesday, August 22, 2006
Editorial: Casino talks again
WHY City Hall would want to raise anew the establishment of a casino in the city is speculation at this point though it's not local officials this time but the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation Inc. (Oro Chamber) that issued the call.
Even if it was Oro Chamber officials led by businessmen Ruben Vegafria who made the call, there's little doubt in the minds of people that some top local officials like Mayor Vicente Emano are behind, if not backing the call for a casino in Cagayan de Oro.
Else why the repeated statements of foreign visitors and traders asking that the casino be built in the city that originated first from Emano and is now being followed by the traders?
Following their vocal support for the casino, City Hall officials like Emano reiterated that contrary to the Church's claims the casino won't result in worsening moral and social conditions like an increase in prostitution, for example.
They reasoned that since it is only the foreigners or the rich people who can enter the casino and play and not the poor people then it wouldn't contribute to a decline in morality or an increase in prostitution.
Maybe the poor can't enter the casino but what's to prevent the rich from becoming poor as a result of gambling away at a casino? Sure rich people can afford to play at the casinos but is that all they're willing to do here in the city?
A story on the multi-awarded news magazine program called Probe featured the story of a girl's family that was broken due to the father's gambling problem.
And mind you, this is not an isolated case as it turned out. The girl, who wept as she recounted the millions lost by her father at the baccarat tables in the casino, warned that unless they seek treatment compulsive gamblers whether rich or poor would eventually cost the financial security of their families.
The poor certainly couldn't gamble the way the rich people do, spending a paltry five pesos to one peso betting on suertres, tarik-tarik, even the local cockpit.
But the fact is, like the rich people whom they wish to become. They are spending hard-earned money on an activity that may cost them more than what they're spending for it in the first place.
The fact is gambling in whatever form is immoral and should be curtailed if not outright eliminated. The gambling situation is already serious enough as it is so why contribute to it further by allowing the rich people to gamble instead of allotting their resources to something more beneficial like investments.
There is no guarantee that anyone who gambles in a casino would pour in their investments here. And if they do come in droves at the casino who will ultimately profit-the casino or the city residents of Cagayan de Oro? These are some of the questions local leaders and businessmen must consider if they are determined to allow the entry of the casino in the city.
(August 22, 2006 issue)
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