MoNDAY / SEPTEMBER 23, 2019
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Congress should step in to stop
unregistered Philippine off-
shore gaming operators (Pogos)
from becoming hotbeds of ille-
gal drug trade and money laun-
dering by foreign s''ndicates, a
House leader said on Sunday-
Surigao del Norte Rep.
Robert Ace Barbers, chair of the
House dangerous drugs com-
mittee, raised fears that Pogos
could suffer the same fate as in-
ternational gaming hubs used
by mafias and drug slTrdicates
for money laundering.
In a statement, he called for
a "close scrutiny" of Pogos, sug-
gesting they might have links to
illegal drugs and organized
crime.
"However, this requires a
deep, profound and perhaps
long and tedious investigation,"
Barbers said.
"This early, I call on our fi-
nancial inteUigence and law en-
'forcement units ... to dig deeper
into the personalities behind
the gambling enterprise of both
the Pogos and the casinos that
$ p1e"e'htbn
were granted permits or license
to operate by Pagcor (Philippine
Amusement and Gaming Cory.)
all over the country," he said.
'"1maynotbe too accurate but
I am certain that most, if not all,
of the 46 Pogos have no legal per-
sonality because thet nanes are
not found in tJIe business/com-
pany name registry in the Philip-
p_ines qr abroad," Barbers said.
"They are likejeepney or bus
'kolorum' operators," he said,
referdng to transport operators
without a franchise.
Barbers said Pagcor should
take into consideration the "se-
curity, social, immigration, la-
bor and related problems that
these firms may create to the
Filipinos, and the country as
well, in the near future."
"In short, our authorities
should determine the beneficial
owners and workers of these
Pogo firms. Are they of good re-
pute and are not associatedwith
persons with questionable repu
tation, character, honesty and
integrity?" he said. -DTYAP INCI