House bill banning POGOs passes 2nd reading

The House of Representatives on Monday approved on second reading a bill that would institutionalize a total ban on all forms of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) in the country.

House Bill 10987, or the proposed “Anti-Offshore Gaming Operations Act,” was filed in October last year to legally reinforce President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s marching order to shut down all POGO operations nationwide due to their involvement in various criminal activities.

If passed into law, it will prohibit any person or entity from offering or conducting any offshore gaming operation in the country, including facilitating it through any means or device, accepting any form of betting, operating as a service provider, or constructing or maintaining any operation hub or structural complex that houses the operations, and logistical, administrative, and support services for offshore gaming.

Establishing or providing any gaming laboratory or services, possessing any offshore gaming paraphernalia, and aiding, protecting, or abetting the conduct of any of the above-mentioned acts will likely be unlawful.

Notwithstanding Marcos’ directive as early as July last year to ban all POGO operations by the end of 2024, only 80 percent have ceased operations, according to the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission in January.

The figure is out of the 400 POGOs in the country. Those who defied the ban, the PAOCC said, resorted to “guerilla” style, or small-scale operations, with 20 to 50 employees.

The spate of illegal activities linked to POGO not only prompted the total closure but also sparked an exhaustive congressional probe spearheaded by the House Quad Committee.