Palace: Other offshore gaming should also cease operations

Malacañang ordered the Cagayan Special Economic Zone Authority to immediately implement the ban on offshore gaming operations, including other offshore gaming that CEZA used to allow.

In a memorandum dated November 5, 2024, Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin instructed CEZA Administrator Katrina Ponce Enrile to enforce the ban.

The directive, issued by the Office of the President, required CEZA to halt all POGOs, internet gaming, and related offshore gaming activities within the zone.

The memo is aligned with the newly-signed Executive Order No. 74, which requires the complete shutdown of POGO operations by December 31, 2024.

In July, Enrile said while there are no POGOs in the economic zone, there are internet gaming (iGaming) operations that are under CEZA and not under the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.

Enrile told lawmakers iGaming started long before POGOs were allowed in the country, and that the POGO concept was actually copied from iGaming.

In signing EO 74, President Marcos highlighted the government’s duty to “safeguard national security, maintain public order, uphold the rule of law, protect the safety of its citizens, and ensure the integrity of the social fabric of the nation.”

The President first announced his intention to implement a ban during his State of the Nation Address in July 2024.

The ban follows a study by the Department of Finance indicating that the social and economic costs of POGO operations — including rising crime rates, social instability, and exploitation of vulnerable individuals — significantly outweigh any economic benefits.

The Anti-Money Laundering Council also raised concerns that POGOs have been associated with money laundering, fraud, and other financial crimes, posing substantial threats to the national financial system.

The ban also prohibits any renewal or extension of existing POGO licenses or permits.

For her part, Senate Deputy Minority Floor Leader Risa Hontiveros said EO 74 has to be clarified.

“While I laud the aims of the Executive Order and am also thankful for the reintegration program for displaced workers, there are still things in the EO that are unclear. The ban on POGO excludes games conducted in PAGCOR-operated casinos, licensed casinos, or integrated resorts with junket agreements. This raises questions about whether offshore online games can be run in casinos or resorts with on-site casinos,” Hontiveros said.

“What this only underscores is that we need a clear law to move forward with a meaningful, clear, unequivocal, and comprehensive ban. The Anti-POGO Act of 2024 has been filed in the Senate and I will make sure during the periods of interpellation and amendments that the gaps and holes will be filled,” she added.

Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada and Senator Sherwin Gatchalian praised the President for issuing the executive order reinforcing his earlier directive.

“Public welfare and safety must prevail. We have seen the bad effects and exploitation behind POGO operations and they should be banned,” said Estrada.

“Over the past several years, the POGO industry has turned the country into a haven for human trafficking, scamming, kidnapping, and other criminalities that have adversely affected many of our people,” added Gatchalian.

Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline “Palace reminds CEZA to follow POGO ban.”