Inside the Philippines’ online gambling epidemic: ‘it’s worse than Pogos’
As addiction to online gambling grows, rehabilitation groups in the Philippines are urging the government to act – before it’s too late
In the dim glow of his bedroom, Clark* used to spend up to 18 hours a day gambling, his world distilled to the spinning reels and flashing lights of online betting apps.
What began as casual wagers – just a few hundred pesos here, a thousand there – quickly escalated. One day, Clark placed a 7,000-peso (US$120) bet that, in a dizzying stroke of fortune, ballooned into 1.7 million pesos (US$30,000).
Clark, who is employed in the business process outsourcing sector and works remotely, found himself betting between tasks. “My productivity really suffered. I only took breaks just to eat or sleep,” he told This Week in Asia.
Clark’s relationship with gambling began early, with bets on off-track horse racing as a teenager. Physical casinos came next, but the thrill soon gave way to paranoia: he feared being watched and marked as a high-roller.
“Although I wanted to go back, I was getting paranoid that they were monitoring me through the cameras and knew that I was a big spender. That’s why I transitioned to gambling online,” he said.
