Philstar
‘POGOs go micro, operating underground’
The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) reports that operational Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) facilities have decreased to approximately 100, with many shifting to "micro-units" operating underground.
Despite President Marcos' directive for POGOs to cease operations by the end of the year, smaller, illegal POGO units have emerged and are difficult to track.
PAOCC spokesman Winston Casio stated that "legal" POGOs have disintegrated into several micro-units, which have now multiplied.
Casio noted that they are "nowhere near 50 percent of our target" in their operations against POGOs, a year into their efforts.
All work visas or employment permits issued to foreigners working in POGOs or internet gaming licensees (IGLs) expired last Tuesday.
Foreign workers in IGLs should now be winding down their operations and using the 59 days given by the Bureau of Immigration to settle their affairs and leave the country.
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Philippine authorities arrested Lyu Dong, identified as a "kingpin" or "godfather" of illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), in Biñan City, Laguna on Thursday night, October 10.
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A bill has been filed in the House of Representatives to enforce President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.'s directive for a total ban on Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos).
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The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) has requested the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) to assist in repatriating over 5,000 foreign POGO workers who failed to downgrade their visas by the October 15 deadline.
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The Office of the Ombudsman ordered the preventive suspension of Porac Mayor Jaime Capil, Vice Mayor Francis Laurence Tamayo, and ten other local officials for six months without pay.
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Government agencies, including the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and the Department of Justice (DOJ), are investigating a syndicate that recruits Filipinos for offshore gaming operations in Laos.
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