MANILA, Philippines — Despite the illegal activities tied to Chinese gambling entities, President Rodrigo Duterte believes that Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) are "clean" and are contributing billions to various government projects.
Duterte claimed POGOs, which cater to Chinese nationals, gives P2 billion to government coffers per month, an amount that he said can be used to support healthcare.
Related Stories
"I will assure you under my oath of office as president of this Republic, as elected by you, POGOs... are clean. It's a game for the other side," the president said during a meeting of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines last Tuesday in Pasay City.
"It gives us P2 billion a month. P2 billion... I need lots of money. That is only the POGO. But PAGCOR is like P17 billion a year. Where do we get that?" he added.
Duterte also claimed that POGOs employ 20,000 workers in Manila. The figure, however, is way lower than the 143,000 foreigners who were given alien employment permits by the labor department last year.
Duterte also reiterated that no official benefits from the POGOs, whom he said directly communicates with state gaming regulator Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.
The proliferation of POGOs have been blamed for various unlawful activities, including human trafficking, prostitution, tax evasion and kidnapping.
Last month, Duterte relieved 19 immigration personnel due to the "pastillas" bribery scheme, which resulted in the entry of illegal Chinese POGO workers.
Last week, Anti-Money Laundering Council Executive Director Mel Georgie Racela told a Senate hearing that P14 billion worth of transactions by POGOs from 2017 to 2019 were tied to "suspicious activities." He said these activities include violations to the e-commerce act, fraud, and illegal drugs.
Duterte has expressed doubts that POGOs are being used as fronts for money laundering.
"With regard to the speculation of senators that they (POGOs) are being used for (money) laundering, well... we have a listing of their deposits. There is a report of money laundering. But in the banks themselves, there is none," Duterte said in a press conference last Monday.
"You are engaged in the business. You deposit money, you withdraw money. It's running. There are winners. There are losers. So they need to pay. And that’s it. If they want the payment to emanate from the Philippines, there’s nothing that we can do. But if you say...the money laundering was not seen by regulators...we were given a copy. It's not true," he added.