The Philippine National Police (PNP) wants foreign workers in Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) to get clearance from them so authorities can check who they are and ensure they are not criminals, considering the reported series of criminal activities involving POGO workers.
PNP chief Gen. Rodolfo Azurin Jr. made the call to revisit the policies on POGOs, citing the series of kidnapping incidents involving POGO personnel.
This developed as the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) arrested four Chinese nationals and a Filipino cohort accused of kidnapping for ransom.
In a report released on Friday, the CIDG identified the suspects as Chui Qun, 28, a POGO staff, and Ernesto Cruz Jr., 42. They were identified as members of the Zi criminal group that engaged in kidnapping, abduction, and illegal detention in southern Metro Manila.
The operation stemmed from the complaint of Jerry Go, a Chinese national, who sought the PNP’s help after his compatriot, identified as Amy Dan Li, was reportedly abducted in Pasay City on Sept. 14.
The CIDG said the suspects then contacted Go and demanded P2 million for her release. The other suspect Chinese nationals – Yap Tiong Ee, Li Wei Xiong, and Li Xing — were positively identified by the victim Li.
This developed as Iloilo Rep. Janette Garin urged his fellow legislators to enact a law banning the POGOs amid the controversies — a day after senators agreed that the country should discontinue the POGO program because of its social cost, including alleged criminal involvement of its workers.
Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, for his part, also pointed out that total POGO revenues from online gambling operations plunged to P3.9 billion in 2021, from P7.2 billion in 2020.
PNP chief Azurin batted for a review of the rules on the entry of POGO workers, most of them Chinese workers who came to Manila to continue catering to their compatriots who play casino and e-games online – which are illegal in China.
“It is high time that we reassess, we reevaluate our policies on POGO employees entering the country. This is why we require that they should be given a national police clearance, so we have a means to check who these Chinese nationals are and at the same time, we ensure that those entering the country are not criminals,” Azurin said in a radio interview.
He added that the status of the affected aliens must be regularly checked to determine whether their stay in the country is for lawful purposes.
“There must be a way to check whether they are already overstaying, or their work permits are expired. Where do they stay? The village personnel and subdivision owners must always check how they are behaving,” Azurin said.
The PNP chief also cited the need for reclassification of Chinese nationals of mixed races, citing the case of a Chinese-Malaysian kidnapping suspect who worked with a Filipino cohort in the Sept. 9 kidnapping incident.
“We will also be requiring that they secure a clearance from countries where they are coming from saying that they don’t have criminal records there. We cannot just allow criminals to simply enter the country just because they are rich,” he added.
In the CIDG operation, authorities launched a rescue and entrapment plan that resulted in the recovery and rescue of Li and the arrest of the suspects. Recovered from the suspects were the ransom money, a .45-caliber pistol, and six rounds of live ammunition.
A follow-up operation was conducted by the CIDG after the Chinese suspect admitted that the money will be delivered to a POGO company located in Parañaque City.
Earlier on Thursday, CIDG members also arrested a Chinese national and his Filipina companion for alleged profiling and surveillance of prospective kidnap victims in Pampanga.
Joint members of the CIDG Regional Field Unit 3, the Mabalacat City police, and the Clark Development Corporation (CDC) security apprehended Chinese national Xiong Gang, 35, and his Filipina companion Nete Joy Gallenero Juanico, 28, in front of Clark Hills Village at the Clark Freeport Zone.
The suspects were aboard a blue sedan vehicle when intercepted by the CDC police.
Authorities saw a pistol grip in plain view beside the driver’s seat of the vehicle, prompting them to conduct further questioning and investigation. The suspects were arrested and taken to the Mabalacat City police station.
The suspects yielded a 9mm Pistol, a magazine assembly with eight pieces of ammunition, an airsoft pistol, and a handcuff.
Meanwhile, House deputy majority leader Garin said the POGO incidents have immensely affected the image of the Philippines and are driving away investors.
“Now that we are opening up our economy and kidnapping and human trafficking headlining our daily news, it is driving away investors considering that it is creating a misinformation that the Philippines is not safe,” Garin said.
Although the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) regarded the POGOs as a veritable source of revenue for the government, Garin pointed out that the crimes outweigh the benefits for the country.
‘It has become a door to several crimes. The Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators hubs have become havens for undesirable aliens, drug and human trafficking, prostitution, and other crime syndicates for money laundering and illicit operations,” Garin said.
She also backed an earlier call by Diokno to discontinue the POGO since it has reputational risk.
“China and Cambodia have banned gambling because of the ill-effects it had brought, and the Philippines should learn from their experience, we should not disregard the negative and deleterious effects that have risen with the continued operation of POGO in our country,” Garin explained.
Online gambling was viewed as the most dangerous tumor in modern society began operating in the country in 2003 but it was only in 2016, after former President Rodrigo Duterte came to power, that the government began regulating online gaming hubs.
As of 2019, an estimated 138,000 Chinese nationals were reportedly working in Manila-based POGOs, with 83,760 of them being holders of special work permits which allowed them to stay in the country for at most six months.
Only 17 percent of those employed in POGOs were Filipinos. But the number could be higher since there were at least 200 POGOs operating without a permit.