Pagcor fights against illegal online gambling
The corporation entered into an agreement with four government agencies to fight illegal gambling.
Philippines.- The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) has revealed that it entered into a Mutual Cooperation Agreement with government agencies in an effort to fight illegal online gambling in the country.
The corporation joined forces with the Philippine National Police (PNP), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Bureau of Immigration (BI) and the Office of Cybercrime (OOC) under the Department of Justice (DOJ). These four entities will create an inter-agency council that will be in charge of intelligence gathering, investigations and prosecutions.
The creation comes after an executive order from President Rodrigo Duterte “to strengthen the fight against illegal gambling and to clarify the jurisdiction and authority of concerned agencies in the regulation and licensing of gambling and online gaming facilities.”
The president’s office will oversee the implementation of the order, which reinforces Pagcor’s authority to regulate all games of chance, including online gambling.
PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Andrea Domingo said: “When the current management strengthened PAGCOR’s regulatory authority over Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO), we immediately saw its significant contributions to PAGCOR’s overall revenues. In 2016, POGO operations generated €11 million followed by €65.5 million in 2017 and €122.6 billion in 2018.”
