(Reply to Pagcor Chairman Alejandro H. Tengco)
Dear Mr. Tengco,
Warmest greetings of peace in Christ.
Thank you for your letter dated 3 July 2025 responding to the concerns the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has raised regarding the hazards of online gambling, particularly its destructive impact on our youth, families, and the poor. We appreciate your effort to clarify the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation’s (Pagcor) position point by point, and we respond in the same spirit of dialogue.
1. On the so-called “paradigm shift” to legalized online gambling
While we recognize that digital platforms have become part of everyday life, gambling is not a basic necessity — it is a vice that profits precisely from human vulnerability and loss. Expanding access under the pretext of changing consumer habits only magnifies the social harms that gambling brings: broken families, indebtedness, and addiction that ruin lives.
2. On technology and the argument that we must “cope”
You argue that banning online gambling will push it underground. But this logic could be used to justify any vice so long as it produces revenue. The solution is not to normalize harmful behaviors but to strengthen law enforcement, digital literacy, and community support systems that help people resist addiction. Revenue must never outweigh the moral duty to protect the common good.
3. On so-called safeguards and “Responsible Gaming”
Your letter outlines Pagcor’s regulatory framework, “Responsible Gaming” initiatives, and partnerships. However, we must name the uncomfortable truth: “Responsible (Online) Gambling” is a contradiction in terms.
Ask any expert: the very features that make online gambling so profitable—its 24/7 accessibility, anonymity, and convenience—make it nearly impossible to guarantee that minors or vulnerable people are truly protected. Even when “Know Your Customer” (KYC) protocols exist, in practice they are extremely easy to bypass:
IDs can be faked or borrowed.
Multiple accounts can be created.
E-wallets and online payments remove face-to-face checks.
Offshore and illegal sites ignore safeguards altogether.
Aggressive marketing through celebrities, influencers, and online gaming streams reaches young people in their own spaces.
These realities expose the moral contradiction: an industry that depends on accessibility and secrecy cannot credibly claim to shield the very people it targets. In the digital realm, there is no bouncer at the door. There is no such thing as truly “responsible” online gambling when the business model is designed to maximize play, losses, and repeat betting.
4. On minors’ accessibility
Your own letter admits that children still manage to access gambling sites, whether illegal or through family accounts. This fact alone shows how unenforceable online age barriers really are. Unlike physical casinos, the home itself becomes the gambling venue—hidden from parents and guardians.
5. On celebrity endorsements
Celebrities and influencers glamorize gambling, normalize risky behavior, and create the illusion of easy money. This directly contradicts any claim of “responsible” promotion. Such advertising preys especially on the youth who are drawn in by peer culture and aspirational lifestyles.
On government responsibility, not complicity
We fully agree that addressing gambling’s social risks requires a whole-of-society approach. But the first moral obligation rests with the State not to profit from vice. When the government acts as promoter, regulator, and beneficiary of gambling revenues, it becomes complicit in the very harm it claims to guard against. No tax revenue is worth the shattered lives, families, and futures lost to gambling addiction.
In closing, the CBCP remains committed to working with all sectors to protect our people, especially the young and the poor, from the devastating consequences of gambling addiction. We renew our moral appeal for a policy shift that places human dignity and the common good above short-term financial gains. We urge you and our government leaders to reflect deeply: What future do we build when we normalize vice and dress it up as entertainment?
Please know that you remain in our prayers as we continue this dialogue — for the moral and social welfare of our beloved nation.
With every blessing, I remain
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Pablo Virgilio S. David
Bishop of Kalookan
President, Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines