THE Quezon City government has banned a popular mobile phone game, Pokemon GO, from placing “lure spots” or points of interest called “Pokespots” in the vicinity of government offices, schools and places of worship in the city.
District 5 Councilor Allan Butch Francisco authored Resolution 7128 of 2017, calling on Pokemon GO developer Niantic Inc. to exclude areas around government offices, schools, and places of worship as lure spots.
“This will bring down the productivity level of government workers, raise the risk Pokemon GO poses by its increasing usage among school children, and how it defeats the dignity that is supposed to reign in houses of religious worship,” Francisco said.
The measure took note of the widespread incidents of Pokemon “zombies” injuring gamers and spectators that had threatened public safety due to the players’ poor situational awareness as they tried to catch the digital monsters through their mobile phones.
Pokemon GO is an augmented reality gaming app based on the popular Pokemon game and television series, using global positioning system and Google maps to place virtual Pokemon characters in locations ranging from train stations, interesting architecture, malls and other landmarks.