Pasig shuts down all POGOs, e-games, e-bingos establishments in city

According to Mayor Vico Sotto, Pasig City has effectively shut down all of its offshore gambling establishments (POGOs) as well as its e-games and e-bingo businesses.

This action was done in accordance with City Ordinance No. 55-2022, according to a Facebook post by Mayor Sotto. The municipal government is giving gambling enterprises until the end of 2023 to cease operations.

Sotto said that they offered the POGOs over a month to cease activities on their own will. According to the local chief executive, 18 of them kept operating without legitimate permits until last February, despite the laws and local government regulations.

The licenses for e-games and e-bingo are set to expire on December 31, 2023, as Mayor Sotto emphasized.

In Filipino, Mayor Sotto said, “Their continued operation is brazen,” during Monday’s flag-raising ceremony at City Hall.

The Business Permit and Licensing Department was instructed by Mayor Sotto to seal the gambling establishments on February 9.

“If they don’t contribute positively to our community, they don’t belong in our city,” he said.

In a social media post, Mayor Sotto highlighted the connection between these establishments and issues including human trafficking and gambling addiction.

“The city’s financial loss is minimal, even though they claim to pay ‘taxes,'” he said on Facebook.

Though they are exempt from City Ordinance No. 55-2022, which prohibits gaming businesses from obtaining licenses to operate in Pasig City, Mayor Sotto emphasized that Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office lottery outlets would continue to operate in the city.

Original story by: Philippine Daily Inquirer