MANILA — The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) on Saturday said it is looking into over 50 Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations site across the Philippines, including the Multinational Village in Parañaque and a former island resort in Cavite.

The POGO island and the Multinational Village have been subject to complaints from nearby communities and village residents as the areas are now dominated by Chinese nationals, who are suspected of being sleeper agents of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

“Nasa 58 na iba’t ibang klase ng online gaming hubs ang minamanmanan ng commission,” PAOCC spokesperson Winston John Casio told reporters.

“Hindi na kami naninisi… sayang lang po ang effort namin. We are trying to be proactive about it,” he said.

The PAOCC suspects that some Chinese workers are being transported between different POGO hubs, Casio said.

Porac POGO had no license to operate, based on PAGCOR doc

Another raid at Porac POGO hub: Cash, jewelry, suspected drugs seized

“May nakuha sa Bamban na galing Las Pinas. Sa Porac, may nakita kami na mga ID ng mga nagtratrabaho sa Lucky South na nagtratrabaho sa Hong Sheng,” he said. 

“Many of these scam farms share employees, transportability. Employees of Lucky South were at one point employees of Hong Sheng or vice versa. So nagpapaikot-ikot lang sila,” he said.

Local government officials would soon be instructed to “forcibly enter” POGO hubs that would refuse to open their premises for inspection, Casio said, underscoring that PAOCC needs the cooperation of other agency’s as it is understaffed.

Of the 58 POGOs operating in the Philippines, only 43 have licenses, he said.

A raid in a single compound can last around 10 days, while it may take 2-3 months up until POGO workers are deported, he said.

“It’s a very big problem,” he said.

Several agencies have urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to impose an outright ban on POGO operations in the Philippines, but the Chief Executive has yet to respond to these calls.

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