DILG’s Remulla: All POGOs closed by yearend

MANILA, Philippines — Make no mistake. There will be no more Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO) and other online gaming enterprises in the country by the end of this year, as ordered by President Marcos, Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla said yesterday.

“Like I announced, the POGOs will be closed starting Dec. 15 and all the rest will be closed by Dec. 31, no exceptions and that goes with Filipino-run POGOs, that goes with Chinese or foreign-run POGOs. There are no exceptions to this,” Remulla said at a press conference at Camp Crame.

He said licenses issued by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) “are revoked under the presidential order and all subsequent requests.” He said 41 POGOs with Pagcor licenses have agreed to fold up.

Marcos ordered a total ban on POGOs in his third State of the Nation Address in July.

Some POGOs, however, were able to skirt the President’s order and continue operating.

Remulla said he intends to begin in Cavite his campaign against the remaining POGOs, particularly those at the Island Cove that his family used to own. He was the province’s governor before his appointment as head of the Department of the Interior and Local Government.

The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) said there may still be around 100 POGO hubs operating despite the President’s ban order.

In an interview with dwPM, PAOCC chief Gilbert Cruz said recent investigations by various government agencies, including the Senate, the House of Representatives and National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) have brought clarity to the situation.

“The investigations have been fruitful. We’ve been able to identify key players in the POGO industry, like Tony Yang and Michael Yan. What was once a silent operation has now been exposed, and many POGOs have been shut down,” Cruz said.

He cited a Pagcor report stating that most POGOs have stopped operations.

Cruz vowed no letup in the campaign against POGOs, saying they would be detected if they try to regroup and operate in small clusters.

“Even if they hide in smaller groups, there are indicators, especially at night, due to their operations being aligned with different time zones,” he explained.

On the possibility of Chinese involved in POGOs relocating to other parts of the country, Cruz said it would not be easy for them to do so as they would have to consider factors such as internet connectivity.

Cruz also confirmed that local government officials suspected of involvement in POGOs are under investigation, including Porac, Pampanga Mayor Jaime Capil.

“There are ongoing investigations, and we may file cases against some local officials in the coming weeks or months,” he said.

He also cited investigation on recently arrested Lyu Dong, said to be the “godfather” of POGOs in the Philippines.

“Lyu Dong is a key player. He was running a major POGO hub in Laguna, and we are investigating his connections with other POGOs, including those in Porac and with former Bamban mayor Alice Guo,” Cruz said. — Mark Ernest Villeza, Sheila Crisostomo