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House appropriations panel to help government cope with POGO revenue loss

Philippines | National

House appropriations panel to help government cope with POGO revenue loss

By Ellson Quismorio

At A Glance

House Committee on Appropriations Chairman Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Zaldy Co has sworn to help the government cushion the blow of the impending loss of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) revenues.

Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Zaldy Co (Facebook)

House Committee on Appropriations Chairman Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Zaldy Co has sworn to help the government cushion the blow of the impending loss of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) revenues.

Co had this to say in a statement Monday night, July 22, after President Marcos had declared a total ban on the controversial industry during his State of the Nation Address (SONA).

"Now that POGOs' abolition is policy, we will push for ways to compensate for the POGO revenue loss. The President listens to the resounding call of the Filipino people to remove all POGOs," Co said.

The Bicolano gave the commitment just a few week before the start of the deliberations of the proposed P6.352-trillion National Expenditure Program (NEP) for 2025. The appropriations committee is the House panel that mainly peruses the NEP, which is the precursor of the national budget.

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https://mb.com.ph/2024/7/22/romualdez-praises-marcos-for-pogo-ban-showing-compassion-to-workers

But how much revenue loss are we talking about? The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) said collections from POGOs last year stood at P5.1 billion from 87 licensees.

This was viewed by POGO proponents as a huge improvement from the P2.99-billion from the year before, which came from 158 licensees.

POGOs went through a boom period during the previous Duterte administration. They have been recently linked to various criminal activities, including syndicated crimes.

Related Tags

State of the Nation Address POGO PAGCOR zaldy co

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