Recent arrests of Chinese nationals and other foreign nationals in the Philippines, that had been involved in illegal online gaming, “are not in any way related to legitimate” Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), said the country’s gaming regulator in a Wednesday statement.
State-run Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor) also said “that any individual, group or entity” that conducts online gambling without its approval “should not be categorised as POGO”.
The statement quoted Pagcor chairman and chief executive, Alejandro Tengco, saying that POGO operations are “strictly monitored” by the regulator. “Any gaming entity that fails to pass the application process for an offshore gaming licence and to fulfil the documentary and financial requirements, among others, cannot be labelled as legal offshore gaming operators or POGO,” he added.
The online gaming industry in the Philippines had grown exponentially up to the advent of Covid-19 in early 2020.
The national authorities say they have recently stepped up efforts to prevent illegal online gaming activities in the country. The crackdown was said to be “triggered by reports of murder, kidnapping and other crimes,” stated this week an official of the country’s Department of Justice.
Pagcor’s Mr Tengco said his agency was closely coordinating with various governmental departments “to effectively determine any illegal offshore gaming operations in the country and thwart kidnapping and human trafficking incidents”.
According to Wednesday’s statement, there are currently 34 approved POGOs, and 127 accredited service providers that undergone probity checks.
The licences of hundreds of POGOs had been cancelled by the regulator as of mid-September, reported an official news agency earlier this week. The POGOs targeted for closure had licences that either had expired or had been revoked, for violations such as non-payment of government fees, according to the report.
