It’s been said that the best way to throw the dice is to throw it away—for good.
Well, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) chairman Alejandro “Alex” Tengco doesn’t feel that way insofar as the controversial Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) are concerned.
Amid clamors to let the POGOs go, Tengco believes they can stay in the country—under stricter regulations—considering the substantial revenues they can contribute to the national economy, plus some 70,000 job opportunities for the local workforce.
He is giving a new POGO name though—International Gaming Licensee (IGL)—hopeful that it won’t be the same dog with a new collar.
But retaining POGO does not mean he is being indifferent to public sensibilities. On this score, he must do a delicate balancing act between morality issues and national interest, and that’s not an easy thing to do.
Somehow, he admitted that some POGOs were indeed, involved in illegal activities. To curb this hooliganism, he reinforced collaboration with law enforcement agencies—the Philippine National Police, the Department of Justice, the National Bureau of Investigation, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, and the Department of Information and Communications Technology.
“We have been going against those that are involved in human trafficking and kidnapping, so I believe if you are able to properly monitor and properly police there is definitely a chance the industry might contribute more revenue. But if you just close your eyes and let them do what they want to do, it will go back to the wild, wild west,” Tengco said.
Another ticklish matter that Tengco wants to ultimately resolve is the inherent conflict of interest underlying PAGCOR’s mandated task of regulating the gaming industry and at the same time operating government-owned casinos.
Under this setup, PAGCOR is both the regulator and the regulated. He strongly feels this puts PAGCOR in an untenable situation—being the governor and the governed.
To unravel the impasse, the chairman seriously considers privatizing the casino operations under closer PAGCOR supervision, and he already has the timeframe to put this in motion. He looks forward to placing all land-based casinos in the hands of private operators by mid-2025.
“We have started preparing for this transition in earnest, and we are starting where it matters most – within PAGCOR itself… We certainly know our potential and capability to become the gold standard in the Asian gaming scene,” Tengco disclosed.
Allaying fears that the move will result in the displacement of a large number of employees, Tengco gives assurance that the matter was being taken care of.
Anyway, Tengco has bigger plans other than privatization.
The chairman is bent on instituting essential reforms in the corporate structure and business operations to boost overall image as a responsive and competitive government-owned and controlled corporation.
The projected reforms also cover modernization of the casinos, including replacement of the slot machines that have seen better days to make the facilities more lucrative and attractive.
“I came in at a time when the procurement department was under the marketing department, which was unheard of. Both marketing and the procurement departments play a vital role in any organization,” Tengco said in an interview with the Inside Asian Gaming (IAG).
.It cannot be denied that PAGCOR is a government money-making machine created through a presidential decree issued on Jan. 1, 1977 aiming to regulate all gambling operations in the country.
Hence, revenue generation remained PAGCOR’s primordial consideration.
“I would say the increase in revenue is the most important thing that has happened to PAGCOR since my assumption into office. We have increased our revenue by close to 48 percent compared to a year ago. And considering that we are still recovering from the effects of the pandemic, I should say that it’s a very good result, really. It’s one of the major if not the best achievements that I have had in my one year in office,” Tengco told IAG.
And if plans do not miscarry, he could be musing about giving Macau, reputedly the gambling capital of Asia, a run for its money.
Meanwhile, PAGCOR has definitely recovered from the pandemic which drastically upset its revenue generation, logging P285.27 billion in gross gaming revenues (GGR) in 2023.
Tengco disclosed that the new GGR record was 11.22 percent higher than the previous record of P256.49 billion registered in 2019 and higher than the P214.33 billion recorded in 2022, as opposed to the all-time GGR low of P98.79 billion at the height of the pandemic in 2020.
By way of backgrounder, Tengco completed his education from primary to college at the Jesuit-run Ateneo de Manila University where he graduated with a degree in Business Management in 1982, then a law degree in 1984.
Before joining PAGCOR, he was president and CEO of the family-owned Nationstar Development Corp., a construction company.
By the way, Tengco is a big fan of transparency and rapport with his co-workers, from the top down to the lowest rudder of the personnel ladder.
