The regulator says that all previously licensed operators have been shut down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
The Philippines.- The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) has warned that some illegal offershore gaming operators remain active in the Philippines but that all previously licensed operators have shut. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Responding to questions from deputy minority leader Risa Hontiveros<\/strong> during a Senate hearing, assistant vice president Jessa Fernandez<\/strong> said all 42 licenses and 18 authorised service providers had been cancelled and 304 operating sites closed since the ban on offshore gaming came into effect. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Fernandez said, “We are continuing the raids to ensure their closure. We also provide information whenever we receive reports that there are legal operations around Metro Manila or in other nearby provinces or cities. We report this to the law enforcement agencies so that they can also operate.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, PAGCOR senior vice president Raul Villanueva<\/strong> said some operators have splintered into smaller illegal groups, setting up operations inside residential subdivisions and urban peripheries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He said: \u201cWe have observed that they have moved into smaller groups operating in residential areas. Unlike before, when we could inspect sites at any hour, we now face restrictions and need coordination with local government units, business permits offices and building administrators.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hontiveros asked whether former offshore operators had obtained Philippine inland gaming operator (PIGO) licences. Fernandez said PAGCOR had issued 61 PIGO licences so far and would provide a list to the Senate for review.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last Friday (February 28), senate president Francis G. Escudero<\/strong> called for a cost-benefit analysis to ascertain whether licences granted to PIGOs<\/a> should continue. He suggested that the online gaming operations, which are licensed by the PAGCOR, may have a negative impact on many Filipinos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n