Vice President Leni Robredo expressed the need to suspend the operation of online cockfighting in the country following the incidents of missing cockfight enthusiasts since last year.

"No government revenue is worth the destruction of ordinary Filipino. I really believe that it should be suspended at the soonest possible time and be investigated," she said in a taped television interview Friday.

"What is the safeguard that what happened today will not happen in the future?...For me the most important thing is the protection not only the morality of the Filipino but the safety of every Filipino family," she added.

Despite the disappearance of 34 cockfight players since 2021, the Palace rejected the call of lawmakers to suspend the online sabong operation.

In his recent statement, President Rodrigo Duterte explained that he allow the continuation of the online sabong operation because its revenue that would help in economic recovery.

However, the Palace directed the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) to conduct a "thorough investigation on the disappearances"

The PNP and NBI were also ordered to submit its finding to the Office of the President and the Department of Justice within 30 days" from the issuance of the order. Robina Asido/DMS