Jueteng () is a numbers game played in the Philippines. First reported in the late 1800s while the Philippines was under Spanish rule, it was made illegal in 1907 after the United States occupied the Philippines. Despite this, and successive subsequent crackdowns, the game remains popular throughout Luzon, while similar games exist in the rest of the Philippines.
The game is popular among many Filipinos, especially in poorer communities. Due to a low buy-in and the prospect of a relatively lucrative payout, it is appealing and often considered harmless fun. Individuals who collect bets, known as kubrador, are often considered trusted members of local communities. Different jueteng "lords" run their own competing games.
Enforcement of the game's illegality is often lax. Corruption is common, with police and government officials often being accused of running or benefiting from jueteng operations. One president of the Philippines, Joseph Estrada, was impeached, removed from office, and found guilty of plunder, in part due to accepting bribes from jueteng lords. The Philippine government operates the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) Small Town Lottery (STL) as a legal alternative to jueteng. However, corruption has led the PCSO to be accused of being a simple front for illegal jueteng operations.
Jueteng is very important to the Filipino informal economy. Jueteng operators and their staff were estimated to number 400,000 in 2009, and many rely on jueteng work for their livelihoods. Congress estimated the annual gross revenue of jueteng operators to be around in 2000. By 2019, this estimate had risen to .
History
Under Spanish rule a lottery was run in Manila, although it is unclear whether it was approved via Madrid or developed locally. It is unclear when the practice of jueteng began, but it was mentioned in the Penal Code of 1887. The use of Spanish-derived terms in the game suggest it developed under Spanish rule. By 1893, jueteng tickets were openly sold on inter-island ships. José Rizal is perhaps the most well-known early fan of jueteng: he won while in exile in Dapitan, Zamboanga del Norte, which he used in part to buy a farm which is now a historical site.
The etymology of the word is unclear. The game is sometimes referred to as "Chinese jueteng", when it was introduced during the Spanish colonial times. In the 20th century games were often run by Chinese immigrants, although by the end of the century locals had taken over. It is thought that the term could originate from two Chinese characters, although opinions differ on which they were. When Chinese Filipino publications such as the World News refer to the game, they use the term, "" (), which means "flower shop" in standard Chinese (Mandarin). Although in 1977, a paper by Gloria Chan-Yap was made pointing to Hokkien Chinese as the source of the word, where the author pointed to the terms, "(hue 'flower', tn 'space')", though by 1980, the same author would release another paper revising her findings with a different chinese character, now recording "(huê 'flower', tŋ̣̆ 'space')". According to (Wang, 1982), "" used to be written as "", and another author, E. Arsenio Manuel, from 1948 did also propose the etymology of the word from Hokkien Chinese as "[hoe(flower)-tng(pawn,bet),", where the likely chinese characters being referred to would be Hokkien .
When the Philippines became an American colony, the government cracked down on jueteng. In 1907, it was specifically made illegal by the colonial-era Philippine Legislature through Act No. 1757. Since independence, various administrations have continued to try different tactics to end the practice, without success. Jueteng existed even during the martial law era, although not as openly. With the restoration of democracy, jueteng networks quickly expanded and became key sources of political information and support, up to the Presidential level. Finances from these networks served as an alternative source of power to state institutions thought still favorable to the martial law era, substituting for expenses that before martial law would have come through party finances. This link to power allowed local networks to consolidate into provincial and regional networks.
Gameplay
Jueteng is a numbers game. Before the game, jueteng solicitors, colloquially known as kubrador (cobrador), collect bets house to house. They are supervised by higher level operators known as kabo (cabo), who are responsible for managing operations within a certain community. At the top are the bankero (banqueros), also known as kapitalista (capitalistas) or "jueteng lords".