DILG probes Porac officials over Pogo hub’s illegal activities

The searched premises of Lucky South 99 are inside a 5.8-hectare complex with a total of 46 buildings,
some of them visible in this photo. —PHOTO BY JUN A. MALIG

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) is investigating local officials in Porac, Pampanga after the discovery of a Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) hub involved in criminal activities operating in the area.

In a press conference on Monday, DILG chief Benjamin Abalos Jr. said the task force will probe the matter and be led by Undersecretary Juan Victor Llamas.

READ: Pogo probe: Guo, 2 other Bamban execs suspended

“Meron kaming task force na pinapa-check dito kung ito ba ay talagang may mayor’s permit, kasi medyo magulo ‘yung statement. May nagsasabing meron, may nagsasabing wala. Pinapatignan ko ito,” Abalos said when asked if authorities are also investigating if the current mayor of Porac is connected to the illegal activities of Lucky South 99 Corp.

(We have a task force that has been asked to check whether it has the mayor’s permit because the statement is confusing; some say it has a mayor’s permit, and some say it does not.)

“Just like the task force that SILG (Secretary of the Interior and Local Government) created to investigate  Bamban, Tarlac, the task force Porac will do the same in looking at permits, local officials’ actions,” Llamas, on the other hand, told INQUIRER.net in a Viber message.

Abalos did not elaborate on what would happen to officials if found to have issued a business permit for the Pogo hub. However, it is worth recalling that Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo was placed under a six-month preventive suspension without pay by the Office of the Ombudsman due to her alleged connection to the illegal activities surrounding a Pogo hub in her town.

Guo’s suspension stemmed from an administrative complaint filed by the DILG accusing her and other local officials of Bamban of grave misconduct, serious dishonesty, gross neglect of duty, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service.

This came after the agency found that Guo issued a business permit to Zun Yuan Technology in Bamban despite the lack of necessary documents, such as a fire safety inspection certificate and a provisional license from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.

Aside from this, the Philippine National Police – Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission also filed a qualified human trafficking case against Guo for her alleged connection to labor trafficking of around 500 foreign Pogo workers.