Online Gambling Boom Sparks Require Ban In Philippines
Women, children and poor amongst victims
Lawmakers propose restrictions or total restriction
Church lambastes 'moral and social crisis'
By Mariejo Ramos
MANILA, July 25 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Before assisting fellow gamblers stopped the roulette wheel or pass up the glory of a royal flush in poker, Filipino Reagan Praferosa battled his own dependency - a passion that nearly cost him his life.
Enthralled by the "big-shot identity" that came with early casino success in Las Vegas and later in Manila, Praferosa went on to lose 50 million pesos ($873,515) in 7 years.
He was imprisoned for theft to cover the financial obligation, sent out to rehabilitation centers and then tried to take his own life.
"Gambling is an emotional disease. It just leads to three places: prison, organization or death," said Praferosa, who developed a support group in 2011 for Filipinos with a betting dependency.
The group, managed by five individuals, has actually assisted more than 300 individuals with online day-to-day meetings. Its members are as young as 13 and as old as 72.
Lawmakers and the Catholic Church fret that dependency is soaring, with ever more gamblers drawn to online games, their need sped up by social-media advertisements and e-wallet platforms.
"The number of callers we received is 10 times more than normal. Before, callers were dominated by males. Today they ´ re dominated by moms ... kids too," stated Praferosa.
Several lawmakers have actually filed costs seeking restrictions on online gaming, such as forbiding the use of e-wallets that enable bigger, quicker bets. Others desire an overall restriction.
Online betting has taken off quickly in the Philippines, with federal government earnings from taxes and charges paid by local operators for the first quarter approximated at 51 billion pesos, ($892 million) according to news reports mentioning information from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), the federal government's video gaming regulator.
It represented about half of the federal government ´ s total gaming incomes so far this year.
At least 80 electronic gaming operators have licences in the Philippines, according to PAGCOR.
Gian Samson, a PAGCOR worker, said he backs a straight-out ban, claiming the human threats far exceed the financial advantages.
"Online gaming should be stopped right away, and we need to identify what is legal or illegal. It ´ s not contributing anything to our society," said Samson, a representative of PAGCOR's employee association.
The chairman of PAGCOR, founded in 1977 to manage video gaming and stop illegal casinos, rejects an overall restriction and instead prefers stricter policy.
GROWING PROBLEM
Former president Rodrigo Duterte ushered in online gaming in 2016, opening the door to mostly Chinese-owned companies that dealt with clients outside the nation.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. reversed track and imposed a ban on the outdoors entities in 2015, citing a "grave abuse" of laws by the industry.
However, domestic digital variations of conventional gambling establishment games, such as fruit machine, poker and roulette, are still permitted and can be accessed from mobile phones.
While online betting is legal, Samson stated regulators have failed to limit the industry or control who can access these video games, as is mandated.
"They are offering Filipinos easy and practical access to gaming. In simply a tap of a button, you can deplete your life cost savings," he stated.
Players can sign up with a video game, then withdraw all their earnings through popular e-payment apps that even kids can utilize, he said.
DigiPlus Interactive, operator of video gaming sites BingoPlus, ArenaPlus and GameZone, stated prohibiting certified operators would "drive gamers toward illegal, uncontrolled sites with no safeguards" along with hit some 50,000 workers in the sector.
"We are open to developing and improving anywhere needed. If there are brand-new requirements to satisfy, or better ways to protect players, we will act promptly and properly," DigiPlus Chair Eusebio Tanco said in a statement.
RECOVERY
The church has decried online betting as a "ethical and social crisis" and called for a ban.
"It is now a public health crisis in our society, much like drug dependency, alcohol addiction and other types of addiction. It ruins not only the individual however likewise their households," Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, said in a pastoral letter.
He said online gaming harms bad Filipinos who have practically no wage or savings and youths who are already struggling with the expense of education in addition to other vulnerable individuals.
In one Facebook healing group with more than 25,000 members, one user said he tried to come by setting up an online gaming blocking app called Gamban but failed to suppress his dependency.
Gamban, a software provider based in Britain, can be set up on personal devices to block online gaming sites.
Gamban creator Matt Zarb-Cousin stated the Philippines is the app ´ s third-highest source of brand-new signups, after Brazil and Britain, showing a rise from about 26,000 visitors in 2024 to more than 32,000 in the first half of 2025.
"It may be driven by the frequency of online gaming, legal and unlawful," stated Zarb-Cousin.
He said online gambling establishments are connected with higher rates of addiction than conventional gambling, and about 80% of Gamban users play mainly slots.
"Everyone wishes to make better lives for themselves, and betting is something that can totally damage that in a really short area of time," stated the former gaming addict.
In countries such as Britain, the Netherlands and Norway, Gamban is free. In the Philippines, it costs $3.49 a month.
"There should be obligations put on gambling operators to secure customers sufficiently. And in my perfect world, there wouldn't be as lots of people needing Gamban," he stated.
"Regulation, if done correctly, can avoid or at least reduce online gambling substantially." (Reporting by Mariejo Ramos. Editing by Lyndsay Griffiths and Ellen Wulfhorst. The Thomson Reuters Foundation is the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters. Visit https://www..news)
