‘Not victims’: Tulfo bares Pogo-police scheme to negotiate embassy release deals

Sen. Raffy Tulfo during one of the Senate deliberations. Senate PRIB file photo / Voltaire F. Domingo

MANILA, Philippines — Several of the Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogo) workers rescued in Las Piñas recently are apparently not victims but are part of the scheme, Senator Raffy Tulfo said as he accused police officers of negotiating a deal with different embassies for these individuals’ release.

Tulfo, in a briefing on Monday, said although Filipino and foreign workers rescued from a Pogo firm can be considered victims, perpetrators mingle with them, negotiating a deal with police officers before they are released.

“Every single time, kapag merong ganitong mga raid, lahat ng mga Pilipino agad-agad pinapauwi.  Of course I know na merong mga victim sa kanila, of course I recognize as victims they should be helped, bigyan ng assistance, ituring na bilang isang biktima, kaawaan sila.  Pero meron at meron d’yan na hindi mga biktima,” Tulfo said.

(Every time we have these raids, all Filipinos are immediately asked to leave.  Of course, I know that some of them are victims. Of course, victims should be helped, treated like victims, and given compassion.  But some of them are actually not victims.)

Tulfo said that it had been 13 days since the raid, but none of the individuals rescued have been repatriated — believing that it is because an under-the-table deal to release them has not been finalized.

The senator was referring to the rescue of 2,714 Pogo workers in Las Piñas reported last June 27, who were working for Xinchuang Network Technology Inc., formerly known as “Hong Tai.”

Reports showed that 1,528 of the 2,714 workers were Filipino, while the rest were classified into the following:

• 600 from China
• 183 from Vietnam
• 137 from Indonesia
• 134 from Malaysia
• 81 from Thailand
• 21 from Taiwan
• seven from Nigeria
• five from Singapore
• five from Myanmar
• four from Yemen
• two each from Pakistan and Africa
• one each from India, Somalia, Sudan, Cameroon, and Iran

READ: Cops rescue 2,714 workers during Pogo complex raid in Las Piñas 

“Even while we speak, I’m very confident, 13 days na po, nagkakaroon po ng tawaran, I’m serious about this and I have proof but right now, hindi ko po pwede i-divulge ‘yon.  (Pero) ‘yong mga foreigners na nandoon hinihingan ng pera bago sila pakawalan at i-repatriate,” he claimed.

(Even while we speak, I’m very confident, it has been 13 days, and there have been deals to negotiate their release payment.  I’m serious about this and I have proof but right now, I cannot divulge it.  But foreigners are being asked to pay before they can be released and repatriated.)

“’Yong mga local na mga Chinese na nandoon, hinihingan sila ng pera para pakawalan at papalabasin na victim.  Even do’n sa mga Pilipino, hinihingan para palabasin silang victim, ginagawa lang gatasan, ginagawa lang moro-moro itong ginagawang raid ng ating mga otoridad,” he added.

(Same for the Chinese nationals rescued. They are released and made to appear as victims.  Even for Filipinos, the police are asking for money to make it seem like they are victims. They are only milking money from these fake raids of the authorities.)

Tulfo went as far as to say that police, particularly those from the Philippine National Police’s Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP-ACG), are talking with the embassies to accommodate the release of the supposed Pogo workers.

“I talked to ACG earlier, and they told me that biometric profiling by the Bureau of Immigration is continuous, but when I called Immigration, they said they have stopped since July 6.  But up to now nobody has been repatriated, the operation was done 13 days ago, but no one has been charged,” he said in Filipino.

“ACG said five Chinese nationals and fugitives have been charged, but what has happened to those fugitives?  How about the over 2,000 foreign nationals who are still inside the building?  In my humble opinion, the reason nothing has happened is because they are still negotiating the release amount.  That’s why people are still held, because they would be paid for by their respective embassy,” he added.

When pressed further as to how he is sure that embassies are involved, Tulfo said that information he received showed that officers involved called embassies first before giving a heads-up to counterpart agencies.

“Embassy people are there talking to our authorities who have processed these foreigners, and from the information I received, negotiations have taken place,” he claimed.

“Because there are embassy personnel on-site.  The police called the embassy people even before they called other law enforcement agencies who can help them in the investigation […] but instead they prioritized the embassies.  Why?  Because the embassy has money to give,” he added.

INQUIRER.net has sought the side of the PNP regarding the issue, but PNP-ACG spokesperson Lt. Michelle Sabino said it is the PNP-Public Information Office (PNP-PIO) who would address the issue later.

JPV/abc