Travel agents rally behind Pagcor chief

MANILA, Philippines - Some stakeholders in the tourism industry are rallying behind Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) chairman Cristino Naguiat, who recently became controversial after he was dragged into a legal row between international gambling moguls.

The National Association of Independent Travel Agencies (NAITAS) defended Naguiat from critics on his receiving of complimentary hotel accommodations courtesy of Japanese casino mogul Kazuo Okada during his visit in Macau sometime in 2010, as reportedly claimed by the latter’s rival Steve Wynn.

NAITAS chairman emeritus and former consul Robert Lim Joseph said they see nothing wrong in the complimentary hotel rooms provided by Okada to Naguiat, saying it is “common practice in the gambling industry.”

“The hotel accommodations, even if they were first-class and other freebies are very common in the industry,” Joseph told reporters in Manila.

“Of course, when gaming officials go here, we also would give them the best. We will not place them in a cheap hotel. It would always be first-class accommodations,” he added.

Joseph said it was unfair to accuse the Pagcor chief of committing impropriety merely because he was given complimentary hotel accommodation.

The NAITAS official also stressed that Naguiat cannot be charged with bribery because at the time, Okada’s gaming license had already been approved prior to his visit to Macau.

“So there’s more reason to dismiss allegations that Naguiat was bribed to allow Okada to operate his business in the country,” he pointed out.

Joseph even cited reported statements made by US casino mogul, Las Vegas Sands Corp. chief executive Sheldon Adelson - which have been published in various newspapers in Japan and in The Wall Street Journal last Feb. 29 – that there was nothing wrong with granting VIP hotel accommodations.

Reports said that Adelson - a respected authority and expert in the world gaming industry - suggested that Wynn may have gone too far in ousting his co-founder from Wynn Resorts Ltd., particularly in branding as questionable the grant of complimentary hotel rooms to visiting Philippine officials in Macau.

“Giving complimentary hotel rooms is endemic throughout the industry,” Adelson said, at a news conference in Tokyo last Feb. 28, rejecting insinuations of irregularity.

Okada already denied allegation that his firm Universal Entertainment had bribed Filipino officials in connection with plans to put up a $2-billion casino resort in the country.

A closer look at ‘industry practice’

Malacañang exonerated Naguiat and other Pagcor officials, but Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Teddy Casiño wants a legislative investigation into alleged corruption in the gaming industry.

Casiño said yesterday that he has filed House Resolution 2274, directing the Committee on Good Government and Public Accountability to conduct a probe on the so-called “industry practice” involving casino officials given the findings of the Wynn Resorts Compliance Committee.

“Chairman Genuino and Naguiat and the other Pagcor officials are not yet off the hook because it is important to know if what they have been doing are really ‘industry practice’,” he said.

“Besides this so-called ‘industry practice’ might be a mere cover for illegal, corrupt practices. Under the law, giving and accepting lavish gifts and favors to public officials are considered bribes,” Casiño said.

“I wonder, what other ‘industry practices’ are inconsistent with our own laws and policies? What other gifts were given and received between Okada’s company and Pagcor? If Malacañang won’t touch on this, we in Congress certainly can,” he stressed.

Wynn Resorts said they commissioned an independent investigation and risk assessment of investing in the gaming industry in the Philippines and it came out with findings in January 2011.

The results of the probe said official corruption in the Philippine gaming industry is deeply ingrained and that there are doubts that newly elected President Aquino’s stated plans for reform would eliminate corruption in the gaming industry.

The independent investigation also found that the country’s legal/regulatory frameworks were not closely aligned with American compliance and transparency standards, and despite a general refusal by witnesses to discuss Okada’s role in the Philippines, other information created the suspicion that persons acting on Okada’s behalf had engaged in improprieties.

The Wynn report also said, Okada’s ledger account revealed “36 separate instances, from May 2008 to June 2011 where Okada or his associates/affiliates made payments exceeding $110,000 that directly benefited senior Pagcor officials.”

This included payment for luxury lodging, extravagant dinners, shopping and cash to spend for, among others, Genuino and his family and friends and Naguiat.

Former first gentleman Jose Miguel “Mike” Arroyo also supposedly stayed in Wynn Macau under Okada’s ledger from Nov. 12 to 17, 2009.

“We must ensure that there is no double standard here. There should be no room for special treatment even if you are the President’s friend, a former president or the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. At the end of the day all we want is for our officials to follow the stringent standards that they are sworn to uphold,” Casiño said.

Unjust dragging Phl in casino war

A key player in the international gaming industry, Okada filed a complaint against his erstwhile business partners in Wynn Resorts Limited, which wants to oust him from its board.

“We have never done anything improper for the purpose of receiving future governmental benefits,” the 69-year old Okada was quoted as saying in wire reports.

“Specifically, I would like to note we have not received a final gaming license, and ultimately a license will be granted automatically upon or completing construction,” he added.

The accusation of impropriety was largely instigated by his erstwhile partner Wynn, Okada lamented.

“This is a transparent attempt by Steve Wynn and others not only to silence me as director and remove the company’s largest shareholder, but to enrich themselves in the process,” he said, adding that he was never given the chance to explain his position to the board before the share redemption.

News reports earlier said that Okada filed a counterclaim against Wynn whose business has long links with the gambling mafia in the United States.

Named defendants in Okada’s claim against the District of Nevada court were Nevada-based Wynn Resorts, Ltd and 12 individuals led by Stephen A. Wynn and Kimmarie Sinatra. – With Michael Punongbayan