It was legal until it wasn’t? Cebu POGO hub controversy goes way back to 2019

The discovery of an illegal Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hub on August 31 in Barangay Agus, Lapu-Lapu City left many residents, especially public officials, scratching their heads over how exactly it appeared out of nowhere.

On July 23, Lapu-Lapu City Mayor Junard Chan said on SunStar Cebu’s online news program Beyond the Headlines that there weren’t any “legal” POGO hubs in his city and that they haven’t approved any application for one — a sentiment he reiterated in a press conference on Monday, September 2.

A day after the discovery, Chan confirmed in a phone interview with Rappler on September 1, that he was blindsided by the existence of POGOs, adding that they have been closely monitoring suspicious foreigners since his first term as mayor in 2019.

“My treasurer, their team, they go there to inspect the areas. They didn’t find illegal activities inside the compound…I was really surprised,” the mayor said during the press conference. 

“They are paying [taxes] from 2019 until this year but there is no [POGO] operation that we saw,” the mayor added.

The thing is: rumors about the “underground” POGO hub in that same hotel go way back to 2019 — even the mayor knew about it. 

In the same press conference, Chan confirmed that it was the same hotel where officials from the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) rescued women who were allegedly trafficked.

“At that time, it happened in the KTV Bar. It was closed but they operated again because I think the case was dismissed,” the mayor told reporters.

So why are we surprised? Benefit of the doubt?

The 2019 case

A SunStar Cebu article dated August 7, 2019, revealed that the NBI rescued 34 Chinese women during an entrapment operation days before, on August 2, against female Chinese named Zeng Dan, Quan Yiqing, Xiuzhu Wei, and Xiushen Wei inside the Royal One KTV located at the Tourist Garden Hotel.

Then-NBI Central Visayas director Tomas Enrile was quoted in the article as saying that “they [the women] were recruited from China and were promised a job in a legal gaming operation for a Philippine offshore gaming operator, but they ended up in Cebu as high-class prostitutes.”

The NBI filed a case of qualified trafficking of persons against the four Chinese women on August 5, 2019. The rescued women were later released to the care and custody of the Chinese consulate in Cebu.

However, the Chinese consulate said in a statement that there was no evidence that the 34 Chinese women were involved in any illegal activity.

On August 6, 2019, Chan personally inspected the hotel, checked the business permits and said that there wasn’t any reason to close the Tourist Garden Hotel.

“Naa naman na sa NBI that is under investigation naman na nila. But in terms sa permit, kompleto sila ug in order tanan,” the mayor said in a 2019 SunStar Cebu article.

(It is up to the NBI that is already investigating them. But in terms of permits, they are complete and all are in order.)

Rappler reached out to the Lapu-Lapu City Prosecutor’s Office to get a copy of case no. R-LLP-19-01581-CR, which contains details about the trafficking case but was informed that only parties to the case could get a copy.

Friends to enemies

On September 2, Chan shut down six businesses operating inside the Cebu POGO hub. The mayor didn’t see any need to order their closure in 2019 but after the recent rescue-operation-turned-POGO-discovery, it was all out from there.

So what happened in between those years? Well, Chan, as mayor, welcomed the Chinese community to the grand opening of the Tourist Garden Hotel on September 13, 2019.

“Thank you for choosing our city as the venue of your business. Rest assured that you are in the right place for your investment because the new administration is committed to keep Lapu-Lapu City a business-friendly city to the investors and workers alike,” the mayor said in his congratulatory speech.

On September 19, 2019, the mayor thanked Chinese Zhao Shouqi, head of the Lapu-Lapu City Chinese Guild, for donating 22 computer units to the city’s e-library.

Zhao Shouqi is the company president of the Tourist Garden Hotel who was also made the city’s consultant on Chinese business promotions, based on evidence recovered from the rescue operation.

The mayor attended the Spring Festival Gala Party Chinese New Year Celebration at the Tourist Garden Hotel on January 22, 2020. 

On February 13, 2020, Chan thanked the Lapu-Lapu City Chinese Guild for donating 18 computer units which were later turned over to the Lapu-Lapu City Police Office and Pangan-an Elementary School in Olango Island.

On November 28, 2020, Chan thanked the Tourist Garden Hotel, along with the Lapu-Lapu City Chinese Guild and another business, for donating four solar panels and three computer units for schools in the city.

When asked about it, the mayor said during the September 2 press conference that Zhao and his organization are welcome to make donations if they fall under their group’s “corporate social responsibility.“

“As long as it’s legal, they are welcome but it’s a different story if you do illegal,” Chan told reporters.

“There’s no space for illegal business in Lapu-Lapu City…tanang illegal nga himuon, drogas man o POGO, anything illegal kontra sa mayor (everything illegally done, whether drugs or POGO, anything illegal is the mayor’s enemy),” the mayor stressed during the presser.

It’s not quite the usual friends-to-enemies trope but you know what they say? Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer. – Rappler.com