MANILA, Philippines — A recent Pulse Asia survey commissioned by the office of Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian revealed that a majority of Filipinos found the operation of offshore gaming firms to be harmful to the country.
The poll conducted from November 27 to December 1 but released Thursday by Gatchalian’s office to the media showed that among the 1,200 respondents, 58% said the operation of Philippine offshore gaming operators was harmful to the country.
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Of those, 40% said POGOs were “extremely harmful,” while 18% said these companies were “somewhat harmful.”
Only 19% of the respondents said POGOs were beneficial, with just 3% saying they are “extremely beneficial,” while 17% said they were “somewhat beneficial.”
The survey showed 20% of Filipinos cannot say whether POGO operations were harmful or beneficial.
Respondents were asked whether they thought POGO operations were harmful or beneficial after they were briefed that these companies “use online gaming or gambling as their business.”
“Their operations are in the Philippines but their customers are outside the country, most of which are in China,” the survey prompt read further.
“The survey results are an important piece of data that we will take into consideration as the data represents the sentiments of our people and provides relevant insights on the issue at hand,” Gatchalian said.
Senators are currently deliberating on whether to recommend the banning of POGOs following what they described a wave of criminality attributed to the gambling operations.
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. said he wants a “good reason” to ban these companies. — Xave Gregorio