Malacañang directed the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) to freeze and preserve all assets of the raided Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hub in Porac, Pampanga.
According to a memorandum signed by Executive Secretary and Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission chairman Lucas Bersamin, the order encompasses all Lucky South 99 Corp. compound assets.
This includes 46 buildings and all vehicles parked in the vicinity.
In a separate letter addressed to Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla and Bureau of Immigration, PAOCC ordered the deportation of 156 foreign nationals apprehended in the POGO hub.
PAOCC directed the Department of Justice and BI to facilitate the transportation of the apprehended foreign nationals to temporary detention facility and facilitate the summary deportation.
Meanwhile, the Association of General and Flag Officers, Inc. (AGFO) joined calls by legislators, the Catholic Church, and civil society groups for the “immediate and complete closure of the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations (POGO) nationwide.”
“Many of these gambling outlets are used as fronts by organized crime groups for human trafficking, prostitution, kidnapping, cyber scam, illegal drug trade, torture, surveillance and cyberattacks on government agencies and other offenses that severely threaten Filipino values and security,” the group said in a statement.
AGFO reechoes the President’s “zero tolerance policy for corruption and human rights abuses…and calls on the government to nip the bud of national insecurity brought about by the POGO at the soonest,”
As this developed, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said that more than 22,000 workers will lose their jobs once the government implements a total POGO ban.
Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma said that this early, the department is taking steps on how to provide for the affected workers if the closure of the POGO companies pushes through.
The labor chief said around 50 legitimate POGOs are operating in the country where more than 22,000 Filipinos are currently hired while at least 8,000 foreigners, mostly Vietnamese, are working in legal POGOs.
“We have a big challenge or problem to face if the operations of legitimate POGO firms will be closed, because it will affect the employment of some workers,” Laguesma said.
He said the ban on POGOs will also affect thousands of foreigners who are working in the legal POGO industry.
According to the DOLE, from January to April 2024, it issued around 8,000 alien employment permits (AEP)to foreign workers employed in licensed internet gaming operators in the country.
Laguesma said that most of these foreign applicants were Vietnamese, followed by Chinese. There were also Indonesian, Thai, and other nationalities who sought permission to work in the online gaming industry in the Philippines.
More than 300,000 AEPs were issued to foreign workers from 2019 to 2023, of which, around 70,000 were cancelled for violations. With Rex Espiritu
