THE Provincial Board (PB) has requested the Regional Inter-Agency Task Force (RIATF) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to lift the ban on cockfighting.
The resolution was authored by PB Member Celestino Martinez III and sponsored by PB Member John Ismael Borgonia. It was carried unanimously during the PB’s 15th regular session on May 3, 2021.
On Oct. 15, 2020, the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) allowed the operation of licensed cockfights in areas under modified general community quarantine (MGCQ), as long as health and safety protocols are observed.
On April 3, the IATF reimposed the ban on cockfighting after coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases in the country rose. However, it allowed e-sabong (online cockfighting), provided that this was licensed by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.
More than 23 cockpit operators from towns and component cities in Cebu Province appealed to President Rodrigo Duterte through a resolution, telling him that billions of pesos were lost and thousands of employees were affected due to the prohibition.
The halt of cockfighting activities affected breeders and employees of gamefowl farms, poultry supplies and agrivet stores. It also deprived thousands of referees, gaffers, bet takers, cock doctors and cockpit vendors from making a living for their families.
The entire Cebu Province, including the independent cities of Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu, are under MGCQ.
A copy of the PB resolution was sent to Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, RIATF, Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque Jr. and the DILG 7. (KFD)