The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) has dimissed a fake memo for local government units to immediately terminate the operations of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs).
Picked up by Pagcor, the fake memo states all POGOs must be shut down by the first week of August. The memo features Pagcor logos and was fraudulently signed by Jessa Mariz Fernandez, head of the regulator’s offshore gaming licensing department.
The memo refers to Philippines president Ferdinand Marcos Jr announcing the decision to ban all POGOs during his State of the Nation address on 22 July. During the address, he said all POGOs should close by the end of the year.
On Saturday (27 July) Pagcor dismissed the memo in a statement that said it was a forged version of an earlier memorandum issued by Pagcor on 23 July.
The genuine memo did not give a definitive date for POGO closures. It instead said closures were “pending finalisation of the details and process of winding down”, adding that operations “may remain in the status quo” in the interim.
Pagcor criticises efforts to create “chaos and confusion”
“We have not issued a memorandum ordering local government units to immediately close down POGO operations in their jurisdiction because the president’s order is very clear,” Fernandez said.
“We have until the end of the year to wind down POGO operations and we will follow that.
“This is a clear disinformation intended to create chaos and confusion. Whoever is behind this clearly has ulterior motives. We shall ask the National Bureau of Investigation to investigate and unmask them to determine their motives.”
End of an era as POGOs prepare to close
When announcing the decision to ban POGOs, President Marcos had plenty of criticism for the sector.
He accused the sector of facilitating illicit activities such as financial scamming, money laundering, prostitution, human trafficking, kidnapping, torture and murder. House Speaker Martin Romualdez promised to take action once the agenda was revealed.
The confirmed ban follows a 2022 campaign which called for all POGOs to be outlawed. Senator Joel Villanueva launched Senate Bill 1281 in September 2022 to ban all forms of online gambling, amid claims that prominent public figures were being influenced by the POGO sector.
