MANILA - Businessman Charlie "Atong" Ang on Wednesday denied that he wanted to take control of small town lottery operations with the help of his friend, Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office board member Sandra Cam.
The general manager of the PCSO, Alexander Balutan, had claimed that Cam, a former "jueteng" whistleblower, was plotting to replace him to allow Ang to monopolize STL.
"Nagsisinungaling siya (Balutan) sa tao... Hindi naman ako nakikialam d'yan," Ang told DZMM.
(He is lying to the public. I don't meddle with them.)
Balutan alleged Ang had tried but failed to get approval for his STL bid during a meeting that Cam requested with PCSO Chairman Jose Jorge Corpuz.
The alleged meeting happened barely a week after Balutan and Corpuz were appointed by President Rodrigo Duterte to the agency.
Ang offered P200 million per month to the PCSO if it agreed to allow him to operate STL nationwide, Balutan said.
Balutan said he rejected the proposal because the offer was too small compared with the P1.7 billion monthly revenue generated by STL.
The accusation came just days after Cam claimed that STL operators were only declaring 20 percent of profits while 80 percent goes to the pockets of alleged gambling lords.
ANG: DUTERTE WANTED HELP
Ang said he only met with Balutan and Corpuz because Duterte sought his help to shake up STL operations. Ang claimed the President asked Cam to call him.
Ang said he told the officials that STL was not allowed under PCSO's charter and was prone to corruption as most of its operators used to be gambling lords.
KILL PLOT
He also linked Balutan and Corpuz to an alleged plan to assassinate him last April.
Ang earlier alleged that Justice Vitaliano Aguirre II and National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon were involved in the kill plot.
He said the officials wanted to weaken the virtual jai alai operations of Meridien Vista Gaming Corporation, where he is general manager, in order to promote STL.
Aguirre and Esperon had denied any wrongdoing and the justice chief ordered the National Bureau of Investigation to investigate the accusation.
Balutan said he was ready to face any investigation, even challenging Cam to file a case against him.
Cam earlier slammed PCSO officials for hosting a "lavish" Christmas party for its employees. She said the PCSO spent around P9.88 million for a party at a "five-star" hotel in Mandaluyong.
Balutan claimed the PCSO board approved about P10 million "for purposes of planning" the party, but spent only about P6.2 million.
DZMM, PCSO, Atong Ang, Sandra Cam, Alexander Balutan, Jose Jorge Corpuz, Small Town Lottery