Investors plan casinos despite Duterte opposition

DAVAO CITY—President Duterte’s public pronouncement against casinos is not deterring investors from planning to build one in the city that Mr. Duterte ruled for more than two decades.

A Quezon City-based company, PRIME Philippines, said negotiations were ongoing with the Davao City Investment Promotion Center for a hotel and casino.

PRIME is a company helping investors find ideal sites for projects and maintains an office here.

Raphil Saguan, PRIME’s associate for capital markets and investments, told the Inquirer on Wednesday that two big-ticket projects being proposed for the city were local investments.

He declined to identify the investors, though.

Saguan said the investors planned to spend P1 billion on the hotel alone. He did not provide figures for the planned casino.

He said the hotel and casino industry could bring more opportunities to Davao, which is considered the biggest central district in Mindanao. —JUDY QUIROS WITH A REPORT FROM ALLAN NAWAL