MANILA – Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has urged the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to adopt a proactive approach in the cancellation of alien employment permits (AEPs) of foreign workers in the Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO) as the ban on POGOs draws near.
“POGO entities are morphing into something else so they could stay in the country and continue their scamming activities,” Gatchalian said as quoted in a news release on Tuesday.
“We need a very proactive approach to cancel and eventually send these workers to their country of origin and we need the entire government machinery to work together to cut the legal basis for these individuals to stay in the Philippines.”
The legal basis for POGO operations in the country is set to expire by the end of the year, after which a ban will take effect.
The DOLE said about 15, 819 AEPs were issued in 2024 alone and about 36, 000 these have already been canceled since President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. announced in his State of the Nation Address (SONA) in July the ban on POGOs by December 31 this year.
The department said it is coordinating closely with the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to ensure that the working visas of foreigners with POGO-related AEPs are canceled, and they are prevented from staying illegally in the country.
Gatchalian also urged the DOLE to step up its employment facilitation programs for Filipino POGO workers to ensure they would be absorbed by the labor market.
“This is one of the things that we are worried about – the displacement of Filipino workers. So, I urge the department to continue with job fairs and other programs for local POGO workers so that displaced workers would be given meaningful jobs,” he said.
DOLE said about 27, 590 Filipinos were employed by POGOs.
Gatchalian, chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, has aggressively advocated for the expulsion of POGOs from the country for more than two years. (PNA)