Female Philippines official resigns after seen gambling on video

Manila: A female official resigned after she was seen gambling in a casino, in a video that went viral on the internet.

“I choose to resign,” Land Transportation Office (LTO) chief Virginia Torres, 60, told ANC, a TV station, denying allegations that she was asked to resign.

Noting how she said goodbye to President Benigno Aquino during their meeting in Malacanang, the presidential palace, on September 30, Torres said, “I told the president properly about my plans. And he agreed. We had a pleasant talk.”

Reacting to the embarrassing video, which showed her gambling in a government-run casino, and which went viral on the internet in August, Torres said, “We all know it was a set-up. I have forgiven them.” She, however, refused to identify the people behind the alleged plot.

“After all I am retiring, that’s why I have decided to forget all of these [things that happened to me in the past],” Torres added.

Earlier, at the height of the controversy that she faced, she said she was enticed to sit before a slot machine because its light mesmerised her, adding that she strayed into a casino after a dinner date with a friend.

LTO has been criticised for incurring loss of 2 billion pesos (Dh166 million) from an IT service provider from 2007 to 2011.