BY MERLINA HERNANDO-MALIPOT
The Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) on Tuesday announced that the Small Town Lottery (STL) will be in full operations nationwide effective next month.
PCSO, in an advisory, informed the public that effective Thursday, STL operations by Small Town Lottery Authorized Agent Corporations (STL AACs) will resume” provided that they will comply with several conditions.
It can be recalled that STL operations were stopped due to COVID-19 pandemic.
The PCSO said that STL AACs will be allowed to resume with their gaming operations if they “have no shortfall or deficiency in the cash bond” as certified by the Branch Operations Sector and Accounting and Budget Department.
PCSO added that the concerned STL AACs must have “complied with the approved health and safety protocols for STL as inspected and endorsed” by the Branch Operations Sector.
Likewise, PCSO noted that only the STL AACs that signed the Deed of Undertaking prepared by the PCSO Legal Department for the “resumption of operations under the adjusted remittance scheme” as approved by the Office of the President will be allowed to assume their STL operations.
STL was among those covered by the suspension of PCSO’s gaming operations since March due to the COVID-19 situation in the country. Initially, only select areas were allowed to resume with their STL operations.
On Sept. 16, PSCO said that the STL gaming operations have resumed in the province of Ilocos Norte and in Nueva Vizcaya. A week after, PCSO said that STL gaming operations were allowed to resume in Abra, Nueva Vizcaya, Province of Ilocos Norte, Province of Ilocos Sur, Province of Surigao Del Sur, Province of Davao Del Sur excluding Davao City, and Olongapo City, Zambales effective Sept. 23.
PCSO thanked the public for its continued support of the STL as well as the Lotto games, Digit games, Keno and Instant Sweepstakes Scratch It tickets.
