Celso orders more serious drive vs illegal gambling
Mayor Celso Lobregat meets police officials including police station commanders to reiterate his order for law enforcers to go all out against illegal gambling operators. (JOEY BAUTISTA)
Following reports of rampant illegal gambling activities in some areas of the city, Mayor Celso Lobregat yesterday reiterated his call for a tougher drive against illegal gambling specifically “tarian” and “suertes”.
“You have to be more serious in the campaign (against illegal gambling),” Mayor Lobregat told police officials that included commanders of police sub-stations in a meeting he called at City Hall yesterday morning. “There should be results”.
He emphasized that the campaign against illegal gambling should be a concerted effort of all police sub-stations as well as barangay officials.
In an interview, Mayor Lobregat said: “We reminded them that there is the constant directive to stop illegal gambling activities specifically the tarians and suertes.”
“It should be a campaign of all concerned. We want to see arrests,” he said, as he observed that most of the time, what is being caught are the cocks in the case of the tarian or illegal cockpits.
As the chief executive, Mayor Lobregat has operational supervision over the Local Police.
When Col. Corpus assumed as the OIC police director last July 16, the mayor in his message during the turn over of command ceremony, ordered a stepped up drive against all forms of illegal gambling including the proliferation of illegal firearms. The same call was made when Col. Corpus paid a courtesy visit in City Hall July 15.
Recent reports however say that illegal gambling activities have been revived in some barangays including some areas in the city proper prompting the mayor to personally meet with the police station commanders and other officials to discuss about the matter.
City Police OIC director Col. Amador Corpus was represented by his deputy for operations P/Supt. Alex Carabot, as he was attending the funeral honors given to the 23 slain soldiers at the Western Mindanao Command in Upper Calarian.
Also present during the meeting were Chief Executive Assistant Roseller Natividad and Executive Assistant on Barangay Affairs Mario Roca and City Mobile Group Director P/CInsp. Rodrigo Maramo.
Other issues discussed during the meeting were requirements of the different police stations such as pump boats and telephone connections. (Sheila Covarrubias)