President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. defended his decision not to mention the issue of online gambling in the country during his recent State of the Nation Address (SONA).

In his podcast episode aired on Thursday, Marcos stressed the need to focus on the social impact of online gambling instead of pushing for an outright ban.

Marcos emphasized that the administration is currently in the process of convening a multi-sectoral discussion to assess how best to regulate the rapidly growing online gambling industry, particularly in light of its social impact.

“We still have to form the policy on what we are going to do about online gambling,” Marcos said.“And to this end, I have already started to organize a – shall we – to convene a conference of those who are – all the stakeholders,” he added.

According to the President, these stakeholders will include members of the clergy, particularly from the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), as well as parents, regulators, and other concerned groups.

He stressed that children and vulnerable individuals are among those most affected by the harms of online gambling.

“The parents, of course, are stakeholders here kasi ang victimized demographic ay ang mga kabataan,” he noted, expressing concern about youth exposure and the risk of financial ruin among lower-income groups.“We have to talk to the people who will – if – kung magre-regulate tayo, who will be doing the regulation?” he further stressed.

While some sectors have called for an outright ban, Marcos warned that doing so could drive the activity underground and make it more difficult to regulate.

“The first effect of banning it fully is to put it underground, and then we have no control. ‘Yan talagang wala na tayong regulation,” he said.

When pressed on how this position compares to the government’s earlier move to curb Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), Marcos distinguished the issues.

He said that while POGOs themselves were legal, the problem lay in the accompanying crimes such as human trafficking, scams, and prostitution.

“Because this is – this is not a criminal enterprise. The POGO – POGO itself was not – walang problema… Atsaka ‘yung kung mayroon online gaming ano, eh ‘di sige, mag-online gaming. Wala namang perang pumapasok dito sa Pilipinas, nandiyan sa labas lahat,” Marcos explained.

He then reiterated that the core issue isn’t online gambling per se, but its damaging effects, particularly addiction and its influence on young people.

“Let’s focus on that. Paano natin patitigilin ‘yan?” he said, pointing to the need for a targeted, well-researched strategy rather than a blanket approach.

Marcos noted that a comprehensive plan will be developed to address the issue responsibly.

“These are the things that we are going to examine, and we will come up with a plan to make sure that we address the problem,” he said.“The problem is not online gambling. The problems are the social effects on our children and those who are addicted to gambling,” he added.