Senator Mark Villar assured that the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry will not be affected by the total ban on Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) as he led the inspection of Special Class BPOs (SCBPOs) in Aseana, Parañaque City.

Villar was accompanied by Senator Sherwin Gatchalian and Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) Chairman Al Tengco during the inspection.

Villar, who chairs the Senate Games and Amusement Committee, looked into the operations of two SCBPOs in the gaming industry.

“Ginagawa po natin ang inspection na ito upang makita ang operations ng mga SCBPO at maintindihan kung ano ang kaibahan nila sa mga POGO na ipapasara natin bago matapos ang taon na ito (We're doing this inspection to see the operations of SCBPOs and understand their difference with POGOs, which we will be shutting down this year),” Senator Mark said.

“Ang goal po natin ay siguraduhin na legitimate ang operations ng mga SCBPO na ito dahil ayaw natin na mawalan ng trabaho ang ating mga kababayan (Our goal is to ensure that the operations of SCBPOs are legitimate because we don't want our people to lose jobs),” He added.

Currently, SCBPOs in the country employ more than 5,000 Filipinos across various roles and industries. During the inspection, he addressed some of these employees to assure them of their job security.

“Sa mga susunod na hearings sa Senado, makakaasa ang ating SCBPO workers na hindi sila makakasama sa mga ipapasara bago matapos ang taon. Hindi po mawawalan ng trabaho ang ating mga kababayan (In the upcoming hearings of the Senate, we can assure our SCBPO workers that they're not included in the closure before the year ends. They will not lose jobs),” he emphasized.

“Buong buo po ang suporta ko sa pagpapasara ng mga ilegal na POGO. At the same time, sisiguraduhin po natin na walang Pinoy ang maaagrabyado dahil makikipagtulungan po tayo sa iba’t-ibang agencies para sa masiguro ang smooth and efficient implementation ng directive ng President na ipasara ang mga POGO (I fully support the closure of illegal POGOs. At the same time, we will ensure that no Filipino will be disadvantaged because we will cooperate with different agencies to ensure a smooth and efficient implementation of the President's directive to close down POGOs),” he added.

Villar has scheduled committee hearings in the following weeks to discuss the implementation of the President’s directive to wind down all POGO operations before the year ends.