Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla on Friday, Sept. 23, said the country should allow legitimate Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) to continue operating “but we have to put everything in order.”
“We continue with the manageable POGOs,” Remulla said during an interview with CNN Philippines.
Remulla reacted on calls to ban POGOs in the Philippines, to which the secretary said he is not opposed.
But he said the ban could affect heavily on the country’s economy. “We have to phase them out in a way with the least damage to our economy,” he said.
“Kung kaya itigil, itigil na natin. Kung hindi naman ayusin natin ang sistema para hindi nakakagambala sa ating mga kababayan (If we can, let’s stop it. If not, then let’s organize the system so it won’t bother our citizens),” he stressed.
During the same interview, Remulla assured that efforts are being done so that the arrest of overstaying Chinese POGO workers for deportation will not turn into a “humanitarian crisis.”
He said there are around 40,000 overstaying Chinese POGO workers in the country after the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) canceled the permits to operate of 216 POGOs.
“If we take into custody 40,000 people then that will be a big problem,” he admitted.
“We are calibrating our actions in accordance with our capability to deport them in the soonest possible time,” he assured.
He also said the country would not want to hold a large number of overstaying foreigners.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has started coordinating with the Chinese government, through its Embassy in Manila, to ensure the smooth deportation of the overstaying Chinese nationals, Remulla said.
He said there was an agreement that once the Chinese government has verified that the persons in Philippine custody are Chinese then they can immediately be deported.
The Philippines has in its custody 281 overstaying Chinese POGO workers in Pampanga and are set to be deported.
“We are looking at Oct. 1 or 2 as the start of the deportation and this will continue ‘pag nasanay na tayo sa sistema (once we get used to the system),” he said.