Department of Justice (DOJ) Assistant Secretary and spokesman Jose Dominic Clavano said the agency has been receiving reports from various sources about the spread of STDs among POGO workers, which is now being validated by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
“We just hope that our operation to deport or cancel their visas would prevent the spread of STDs and this is really part of the report that we are asking from the NBI to determine the full extent of this,” Clavano said.
Based on reports, Clavano noted there were cases where around 15 to 20 workers in a POGO company who tested positive for sexually transmitted diseases.
The government is hoping that its move to deport or cancel the visas of close to 50,000 POGO workers would avert the further spread of STDs and prevent more criminal activities from happening.
“So, we will not wait, we will not wait until this also affects our fellow Filipinos. We hope that our ongoing operation will put an end to all the crimes and all the ill-effects of having these Chinese nationals in our country,” Clavano said.
“We can no longer tolerate the behavior of these Chinese nationals. We gave them a place to stay, we accommodated them and we gave them the authority to operate here in the country. However, they have violated our laws as we have been receiving reports about murders, kidnappings, prostitution, human trafficking and spread of STDs. So such behavior cannot be allowed, that’s why we decided to crack down on their operations…and we hope we’re able to contain this as soon as possible to prevent this kind of criminal behavior in the future,” he added.
The DOJ and its attached agency, the Bureau of Immigration on Sunday announced the government’s initiative to cancel the visa of 48,782 Chinese nationals working in POGO companies and service providers whose authority to operate have either been canceled or revoked by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor).
Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla said the cancellation of the visas of these POGO workers would be the most “cost-efficient” and “humanitarian” approach.
The rising incidents of kidnapping, murder and other criminalities in the country are being attributed to the deluge of Chinese nationals working in POGO companies in the country.
The BI said it has started cross-checking the employees of POGO companies whose authority to operate have been revoked to determine who among them are still in the country.
BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco explained that as an effect of the visa cancellation, the aliens will be ordered to leave the country within 59 days instead of being deported.
However, if these POGO workers would not voluntarily leave the country, then deportation proceedings would be initiated against them.
The BI expects the cancellation of visas to be finalized in batches, and warned those whose visas will be canceled to depart the country or face deportation.
The agency assured foreign nationals with valid visas and complying with Philippine laws would not be affected by the move.
Aside from the more 48,000 POGO employees who are facing visa cancellation, there are also 372 Chinese and other foreign nationals who are already in custody after being arrested by either the NBI or the Philippine National Police (PNP).
The DOJ said these 372 individuals are set to be deported in several batches.
While the government is working on the visa cancellation of POGO workers, Clavano assured that operations against Chinese nationals involved in various criminal activities in the country would continue.
“We will catch them, we will prosecute them and hopefully, put them in jail,” the DO spokesperson said.
Police issues clearance to 3,198 POGO workers
The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Monday said the documentation of POGO workers by the police and local government units (LGU) is already ongoing to ensure all foreign workers who work in the industry subscribe to existing laws and regulations.
PNP chief General Rodolfo Azurin Jr. disclosed the ongoing documentation process during a news briefing on Monday where he unveiled efforts by the government to curtail crimes and other illegal activities associated with the operation of POGOs in the country.
“Elsewhere in other industrial zones hosting POGO and other gaming operations run by foreign companies, I was informed that the documentation process of POGO workers by PNP units and LGUs is underway to establish a recording and monitoring system that will keep track of activities of these foreign workers and ensure their compliance with PNP clearance and LGU administrative requirements,” Azurin said.
He said as of September 28, an additional 297 POGO workers availed of the National Police Clearance System (NPCS), for a total of 3,198 police clearances issued to POGO workers as of October 3, 2022.
The PNP is also sustaining its law enforcement campaign against illegal activities in local POGO establishments, particularly kidnapping and trafficking in persons.
Just a couple of days ago, policemen carried out series of operations around the country, which resulted in the rescue of dozens of foreign POGO workers illegally held under human trafficking conditions.
“As we speak, there are several undocumented POGO workers rescued by the PNP who are now in the Bureau of Immigration holding area while awaiting deportation and repatriation proceedings,” Azurin said.
“At the same time, there are also POGO employers and maintainers accused of violations of Philippine laws who are currently undergoing investigation and initial stages of prosecution,” he added.
Meanwhile, the PNP chief said the national crime environment leading to the forthcoming Holiday Season has improved as “consistently shown” by the crime situation report for September, which reflected significant decrease in the total number of crimes, peace and order indicator. The indicator also includes index and non-index crimes, as well as improved ratings in crime clearance and crime solution efficiency.