To stop schoolchildren from indulging in gambling like “video karera,” “cara y cruz,” and jueteng, the regional and provincial police and the Kiwanis Club launched the advocacy on culture of savings at the Dagupan West Central Elementary School in Dagupan City.
Regional Police Director Chief Supt. Leopoldo Bataoil said the project aims to reverse the gambling of culture which is deeply embedded in the lives of Filipinos by inculcating in children a culture of savings.
He said the culture can be reversed but the help of all sectors will be needed, such as the school officials and teachers.
“A child who goes to school with P5 or P10 ‘baon’ will either spend all of for food or other school needs, or he or she will take a chance and gamble on video-karera or cara cruz. But you should remember that that P5 or P10 are five drops or 10 drops of sweat of your parents,” Bataoil told the schoolchildren.
The project “Advocacy on Culture of Savings – Antidote to Culture of Gambling” was launched during the Talakayan Sa Isyung Police (Tsip) during which 100 schoolchildren received piggy banks with some coins inside to start their savings.
The Kiwanis will return to the school to bring more piggy banks to the other schoolchildren, Susan Yadao, a Kiwanis member, said.
Ray Bangsal, Lt. Governor of Kiwanis International Division I urged the schoolchildren to walk to school or spend less on text messaging for them to save. Some of the schoolchildren were seen with mobile phones.
Most of you live very near the schools anyway, so if you will walk, you will save some money. And if you spend less on text messaging, you can save more,” he said.
Bataoil said the women and children’s desk of the town and city police were tasked to conduct lectures in elementary schools and render periodic reports to their superiors. The regional police will provide outline of lecture such as value of savings, evils of gambling and others.
“This project highlights the police’s resolve to address the problem thru demand reduction drive by focusing on lowering urge to gamble. We want to help create a generation that values savings than gambling,” Bataoil said.
He admitted that this may take a long time but “hopefully, it will make a difference” and that “it will complement our continuing operation of raids, arrests and filing of cases against those engaged in illegal gambling.”