Palace to CEZA: Ensure POGO ban followed

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang has directed the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) to comply with the ban on Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) and internet gaming licensees (IGLs), entities whose operations were deemed of “high reputational risks.”

The order was made through a memorandum signed by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin and issued to CEZA administrator and chief executive officer Katrina Ponce Enrile last Nov. 5.

“Consistent with Republic Act No. 7922, also known as the ‘Cagayan Special Economic Zone Act of 1995,’ you are hereby instructed to adhere to the directive issued by the President during his State of the Nation Address on 22 July 2024 regarding the immediate ban of Philippine offshore gaming operators or internet gaming licensees in the Philippines, subject to applicable laws, rules and regulations,” the memorandum read.

The document was released on the same day President Marcos issued Executive Order (EO) No. 74 on an immediate ban on offshore and internet gaming in the Philippines.

In his verbal order on POGO ban during his third SONA, Marcos said the gaming entities had ventured into “illicit areas furthest from gaming” like financial scamming, money laundering, prostitution, human trafficking, kidnapping, brutal torture and murder.

In his EO, Marcos noted that the State has the “paramount duty to safeguard national security, maintain public order, uphold the rule of law, protect the safety of its citizens and ensure the integrity of the social fabric of the nation.”

He cited a finance department study stating that the social and economic benefits derived from POGOs are outweighed by risks and negative consequences, including increased crime rates, social instability and exploitation of vulnerable people.

The “high reputational risks” associated with POGOs or IGLs operations deter foreign investment and tourism and undermine efforts to promote the country as a safe and sustainable investment and tourism destination, the order added.

In July, Enrile, whose father Juan Ponce Enrile is Marcos’ chief presidential legal counsel, told a House hearing that there were no POGOs in CEZA. She said the internet gaming operations in the economic zone were different from POGOs. Enrile added that CEZA has the authority to conduct offshore internet gaming operations since it can register enterprises organized or domiciled in the Philippines or any foreign country.

She also told lawmakers that internet gaming in CEZA began before the term POGO was institutionalized, adding that the internet gaming industry in the ecozone was very orderly and peaceful when it commenced in 2003.

The term POGO was officially institutionalized by the PAGCOR in 2017, the same year former president Rodrigo Duterte issued EO No. 13, which mandated all gaming and gaming-related activities to operate inside the territorial jurisdiction of the authority that issued the license, Enrile added. — Marc Jayson Cayabyab, Jose Rodel Clapano