The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) disclosed on Wednesday that 337 foreign nationals remain in their custody awaiting deportation.

According to PAOCC spokesperson Winston Casio — who returned to his duties the agency’s spokesperson following a hiatus — these individuals are waiting for legal documents, particularly one-way travel documents, passports, and clearances issued by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).

He noted that as of December 2024, the PAOCC has deported 2,121 individuals involved in Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations (POGOs).

“Let me qualify: These 2,121 deportees are only for those operations that were led and supported by the commission. This does not include those who voluntarily left the country as of 31 December 2024, in relation to the POGO ban,” he said in a Palace briefing Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) revealed that 22,609 of the 33,863 POGO workers had returned to their home countries as of 31 December 2024. Of this number, 24,779 individuals downgraded their visas.

“We expect that 11,254 are still in the Philippines. They are those who did not comply with this requirement and have been included in our derogatory records and are facing deportation charges,” BI spokesperson Dana Sandoval said.

The BI has begun locating, arresting, and deporting POGO workers who have been staying in the country since 1 January 2025.

In 2024, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. issued an ultimatum giving POGO workers until 31 December 2024, to downgrade their visas and return to their home countries.

Marcos banned POGOs in July 2024 during his third State of the Nation Address.

The overstaying POGO workers were identified as Vietnamese, Chinese, Indonesian, and Burmese. Sixty percent are male, and 40 percent are female.

Sandoval explained that those who did not leave the country by December 2024 are blacklisted and not allowed reentry to the Philippines.

However, those who complied with the BI, downgraded their visas, and left the country in December are allowed to re-enter.

“They are not blacklisted because they obeyed the BI and were compliant from the start of their work here in the Philippines up until the end of their work here in the Philippines, so they are not blacklisted,” she said.

The BI continues its crackdown against illegal POGO workers in hiding, in coordination with the PAOCC, NBI, and the Philippine National Police.

Meantime, Sandoval said that the government has spent approximately P210 million in its ongoing efforts to combat POGO since raids targeting illegal operations began in May 2023, adding that the agency incurs a daily cost of P70 per detained individual for upkeep.

But she was unable to provide a precise total amount spent by the BI, as the bulk of operations are carried out by the PAOCC.

“Since it’s not yet registered, countries in Europe would need to search this on YouTube first before they can see the West Philippine Sea’s location since anyone who would Google that particular area of our world can only read the South China Sea (SCS) label,” said Marcoleta. “But it doesn’t mean that the South China Sea is solely owned by China — in the same manner that the Indian Ocean is not solely owned by India.”