Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has banned the establishment of any new Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), also known as Internet Gaming Licensees (IGLs), with immediate effect.
Existing POGO operators will have until the end of the year to wind down their operations.
The verdict, not entirely unexpected, was delivered during his State of the Nation Address in Manila on Monday following widespread pressure from a Senate investigation into illegal POGO-linked activities.
“Effective today, all POGOs are banned. “I hereby instruct [gaming regulator] PAGCOR to wind down and cease the operations of POGOs by the end of the year,” Marcos said in his SONA.
The decision to shut down POGOs follows a series of recent raids on illegal POGO compounds in Pampanga and Tarlac amid allegations they had been engaging in human trafficking and scam activities.
A full ban, proposed by multiple senators, had also gained the support of the Department of Finance (DOF) and the National Economic and Development Authority.
However, PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco has long argued that the best way to control illegal POGO operations is not to ban the industry entirely but to better regulate. It was with this in mind that the regulator last year required all existing licensees to undergo a full relicensing process, reducing the number of licensed IGLs from a high of 298 to just 43.
The ban comes just days after the Philippine National Police (PNP) created a special task force to identify and dismantle illegal POGO operations.
