The government will speed up in October and will pursue until the end of 2022 the arrest of “overstaying” Chinese nationals who work with the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs).
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla had earlier said the government has already in its custody 281 Chinese POGO workers who will be set for deportation after their arrest in Pampanga.
Department of Justice (DOJ) Spokesperson and Assistant Secretary Jose Dominic F. Clavano IV said during the “Laging Handa” public briefing on Monday, Sept. 26, that the arrest of overstaying POGO workers has been ordered by Secretary Remulla.
“Ang direksyon po ni Secretary Remulla ay within the first week of October magsisimula na po ang paghuhuli ng mga POGO employees na ito (the direction of Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla is to start arresting the overstaying POGO employees by first week of October),” Clavano said.
“Hopefully by mid-October makapag-deport na tayo ng mga about 2,000 to 3,000 employees (Hopefully by mid-October we will be able to deport around 2,000 to 3,000 employees),” he said.
Clavano pointed out that the operation against overstaying POGO workers will continue until December this year in coordination with the Chinese Embassy in Manila.
At the moment, he said the government has in its custody 281 Chinese POGO workers in Pampanga who will be set for deportation.
He said the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) has cancelled the licenses of 175 POGOs in the country as of Sept. 14, 2022, and it is believed there are an estimated 40,000 overstaying Chinese POGO employees in the country.
“Si Secretary Remulla ay nakipagpulong sa Chinese Embassy para masigurado na smooth ang pagiging deportation nitong mga Chinese nationals (Secretary Remulla had talked with Chinese Embassy officials to ensure that the deportation of Chinese nationals be be smooth and orderly),” he also said.
At the same time, Clavano said the law enforcement agencies continue their probe on POGO-related crimes including killings, kidnappings, and prostitution.
Though the victims and suspects are mostly Chinese nationals, Clavano said: “The direction of Secretary Remulla is to make sure our Filipino citizens are secure in their lives na hindi naman sana umabot sa panahon na Filipino naman ang maging bikitima sa mga krimen na ito (that there won’t come a time when Filipinos become victims themselves).
Earlier, Secretary Remulla had said the country should allow legitimate 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.
“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.”