Senate bill forfeits illegal Pogo assets in favor of gov’t

MANILA, Philippines — Senators pushing for the passage of a measure permanently banning Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos) on Saturday said the bill would address the legal gaps in the acquisition and management of seized Pogo properties.

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian told the Inquirer on Saturday that one section of the proposed Anti-Pogo Act stated that “all assets” used by Pogos would be “forfeited in favor of the government.”

The provision authorizes the government to take over all “buildings or other structures or facilities, materials, gaming equipment and gaming paraphernalia used directly or indirectly in violation of this Act, and the proceeds of such illegal act or activity.”

READ: Seized Pogo properties pose next gov’t challenge

Gatchalian, chair of the Senate ways and means committee, said the sequestration process would be spelled out clearly in the implementing rules and regulation (IRR) of the proposed measure.

He made the remarks after Justice Undersecretary Nicholas Ty, who heads the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking, earlier pointed out that the government had no clear legal mandate allowing it to “provisionally use” the seized assets pending the forfeiture process.

No inventory yet

The government has not yet disclosed whether it had made a comprehensive inventory of all assets of Pogos that had been raided and shut down, including the number of buildings and their floor area, lands on which they stand, plus their actual value, particularly those in Bamban, Tarlac, and Porac, Pampanga.

The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission had proposed to repurpose the properties, such as using them as government offices, school buildings or even evacuation centers. These properties are still to be thoroughly inspected to check whether they are suitable for such purposes.

On Monday, Gatchalian delivered a sponsorship speech urging his colleagues to support Senate Bill No. 2868, or the proposed Anti-Pogo Act of 2024, ahead of the Dec. 31 deadline set by President Marcos to close down all internet gaming companies catering to Chinese bettors abroad.

Sen. Joel Villanueva, one of the lawmakers who exposed the criminal activities connected to Pogos, also believed that the proposed legislation would help to immediately facilitate the disposition of confiscated assets of Pogo entities.

The bill, he added, would “complement” the President’s order to pull the plug on Pogos after the industry spawned serious crimes, such as kidnapping, torture, cyber scams, murders, prostitution and human trafficking.

The raids conducted by law enforcement agencies also showed that the Pogo facilities were being used as scam hubs.

“We made sure that the measure covers all essential aspects, including the forfeiture of Pogo assets and the destruction of gaming equipment and paraphernalia,” Villanueva said.

Money for victims

Sen. Risa Hontiveros, who had spearheaded the series of Senate inquiries into Pogo-related crimes, said her amendment to the Anti-Financial Account and Scamming Act actually allowed the authorities to utilize the confiscated properties to indemnify victims of Pogo syndicates.

Hontiveros said she was hoping that the IRR of the law would be released soon to “properly guide” agencies on the front lines of the Pogo ban.

She said she had recommended that the seized properties be sold and the money would go to the victims of human trafficking of the Pogos.

Davao Norte operation

In Davao del Norte, agents of the National Bureau of Investigation who were supposed to rescue a Malaysian national allegedly illegally held inside a warehouse at Manay village in Panabo City found instead a suspected Pogo operation with 55 Chinese, three Malaysians and a Filipino worker.

Vice Mayor Gregorio “Banjong” Dujali III asked the House quad committee to also investigate the alleged Pogo in his city.

50 computers

The NBI said it still had to subpoena the land and warehouse owner on the 2-hectare property where agents had already taken possession of at least 50 computers found during the Dec. 6 raid in Purok 6 of Manay, according to Ely Leano, spokesperson for the NBI’s southeastern Mindanao regional office.

The agents served the search warrant on Dec. 13 to take possession of the computers after cases of syndicated estafa and online illegal gambling in relation to Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 had been filed against the 59 workers found in the warehouse.

Cyber warrant

Leano said they would apply for a cyber warrant to allow the NBI data forensic officer to examine the data in the computers.

He told the Inquirer by phone they had already subpoenaed local officials, including two barangay councilors, barangay chair Raul Mahipus, and business permit and licensing permit officials in the city to establish how the Pogo came to operate in the city.

Leano said they would also subpoena and question the Davao businessman who owned the warehouse to find out whether he had any knowledge of the Pogo operation in his building.

“We are still doing a deeper investigation and case building of those possibly involved in the operation. It is still ongoing,” he said. —with a report from Germelina Lacorte