President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. should prioritize the bill seeking to repeal the law taxing Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) operating in the country, Senator Joel Villanueva said on Wednesday, July 31.
“Other than the fact that we are responding to the call of the President to ban POGO, we wanted to make sure that the POGO ban should go beyond the present (Marcos) administration,” Villanueva said during the Kapihan sa Senado forum in Pasay City.
“Napakahalaga na matanggal natin yung lahat ng bakas ng POGO dito sa ating bayan dahil alam natin na walang matino o walang advantage na idinulot ito sa ating bayan (It is very important that we remove all traces of POGO in our country because we know that it has brought no sense or advantage to our nation),” the former Senate majority leader stressed.
If given a chance to personally discuss this with the President, Villanueva said he would appeal that Senate Bill No. 2752, be prioritized and certified as urgent.
Villanueva earlier filed Senate Bill No. 2752 which seeks the permanent cancellation of POGO licenses issued by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor).
“I would love to. And if I'd be given a chance to talk to the President, I would appeal na maging priority ito (that this be made a priority),” he said.
“Because I'm sure the President was so happy about the reaction of the people. I remember shaking hands with him after the SONA and that was the first thing I mentioned to him),” the senator recalled.
“And I felt that he’s very happy that the right message was delivered which our people not only anticipated but what our people need),” he pointed out.
Villanueva also said he will ask the leadership of Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero to discuss the possibility of expediting the passage of the measure in the Upper Chamber.
“Even if Pogos are eradicated, for example, by the end of the year, this measure will still not exist because it has yet to be passed. I will still continue to push for this measure,” he said.
“And as I earlier mentioned, it’s because of the fact that we don’t want the next administration or the future administration to invite the POGOs back,” he stressed.