Lawmakers sought to erase the legal framework supporting Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations (POGOs) even as they vowed to continue probing the illegal activities that surrounded such shady enterprises.
Senator Joel Villanueva said he would repeal the law taxing POGOs after President Marcos decided to totally ban them.
“We want to guarantee no traces of POGOs in the Philippines,” said Villanueva as he filed Senate Bill No. 2752.
He said the POGO ban should lead to the repeal of Republic Act 11590 or the Act Taxing POGO, which was signed into law in 2021
Villanueva’s resolution called for the permanent cancellation of POGO licenses issued by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) and economic zones.
The proposed law also gave POGOs 30 days after it takes effect to shut down their operations.
Failure or refusal of the firms to close operations shall subject the responsible officers to imprisonment of 12 to 20 years or a fine of P100 million or both.
Under the bill, the Bureau of Internal Revenue will have continuing authority to collect the POGO’s unpaid taxes even after the repeal of the tax law.
The measure also directs the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority and other relevant agencies to provide a Workers’ Transition Program for displaced Filipino POGO employees.
Meanwhile, House Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe on Tuesday said the House of Representatives will continue its key committee investigations even as it begins deliberations on the proposed P6.352-trillion 2025 national budget.
The continuing probes will include those on extrajudicial killings (EJKs) related to the previous administration’s drug war and violence linked to POGOs.
“Our committee chairmen are asking that they be allowed to continue their committee hearings. Committee hearing rooms used to be our problem. We are always running out of committee hearing rooms, but thankfully this year we have new spaces for committee hearings,” Dalipe said.
Following the directive from Speaker Martin Romualdez, additional spaces, particularly in the new building at the Batasang Pambansa Complex, have been made available for committee use.
Dalipe disclosed that Secretary General Reginald Velasco has already been instructed to make the venues available to the various committees presently conducting probes.
