The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) has approved a P50-million grant to the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to help deport foreign workers employed by illegal offshore gaming operators.
The funding was formalized Monday through a memorandum of agreement signed at the PAGCOR Executive Office. The grant will be released in two equal tranches, with the first P25 million disbursed during the signing ceremony.
PAGCOR chairperson and CEO Alejandro Tengco said that the grant will cover repatriation expenses for illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) workers currently held at the BI Warden Facility and Protection Unit.
“These individuals are unable to return to their home countries because they cannot afford a plane ticket,” Tengco said. “This grant will ensure they receive assistance in accordance with international laws and humanitarian considerations.”
Tengco also stressed that the grant aligns with PAGCOR’s mission to ensure a “clean, legitimate and socially responsible gaming industry” in the Philippines, citing the agency’s ongoing collaboration with the BI to enforce the government’s ban on illegal offshore gaming operations, following President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s directive last year.