The year 2018 was a tough year for Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, but seeing how the agency hurdled all the challenges made all the sacrifices and efforts worthwhile, said PCSO general manager Alexander Balutan.
In a statement, Balutan said: “My first two years as general manager was no joke. President Rodrigo Duterte appointed me here in 2016 because he expected so much from me—that I will deliver, that I will stop illegal gambling.
“I cannot say 100 percent that there was no illegal gambling…but slowly they are now going to STL, but from original 18, we now have 84 Authorized STL Agents nationwide.”
From P4.7-billion earnings in 2016, the agency was able to raise it to P15.7 billion in just one year, ending 2018 with P26,103,422,348.39 gross sales, a 65 percent increase compared with the same period last year.
“This is record high in history of PCSO even in any other agency,” he said.
Of the P63.55 billion gross sales in 2018, Lotto and digit games was the highest earning product at P31,902,529,360, followed by STL.
