Porac mayor, 10 more execs suspended over Pogo hub

SECOND MAYOR TO FACE PROBE AFTER GUO The fallout continues over the discovery of alleged criminal activities that took place inside a Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) hub in Porac, Pampanga province, with the suspension of Mayor Jaime “Jing” Capil and several other local officials. —Niño Jesus Orbeta

MANILA, Philippines — The Office of the Ombudsman has served a six-month preventive suspension on Mayor Jing Capil, nine other elected officials and a licensing officer of Porac in Pampanga province for gross neglect of duty in connection with the operations in their town of a Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) involved in alleged criminal activities.

The Ombudsman served its order on Wednesday, according to an Inquirer source at the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), the complainant in the case.

Capil is the second town chief after dismissed mayor Alice Guo of Bamban, Tarlac, to be sanctioned by the Ombudsman for hosting illegal Pogos.

READ: Possible burial sites at Pogo hub in Porac identified

Apart from Capil, the Ombudsman also suspended Vice Mayor Francis Laurence Tamayo and Emerald Vital, the officer-in-charge of the business permit and licensing office (BPLO).

Municipal councilors Rohner Buan, Rafael Canlapan, Adrian Carreon, Regin Clarete, Essel Joy David, Hilario Dimalanta, Michelle Santos and John Nuevy Venson were also suspended.

The DILG administrative complaint cited 21 respondents, according to an 11-page order signed by Ombudsman Samuel Martires.

‘Inaction’

According to the Ombudsman order, the officials’ “inaction and failure to perform their duties” allowed Lucky South 99 to continue operating despite several violations, including the issuance of business permits in 2021, 2022, and 2023, without meeting the required regulations.

The Ombudsman added that Lucky South 99’s license from the state regulator Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) had expired, and the BPLO confirmed the Pogo firm had no business permit for 2024.

In its order, the Ombudsman also cited the lack of a “Letter of No Objection” from the town officials against Lucky South 99’s operations and the Philippine National Police’s (PNP) report on suspected criminal activities at the Pogo firm’s premises.

“Without delving into the merits of the case and without prejudging the same, these are sufficient grounds to hold that the evidence of guilt is strong at this time,” the Ombudsman order read.

It also cited the gravity of being charged with gross neglect of duty, “which if proven true, constitutes ground for dismissal from the government service under the Revised Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service.”

“(G)iven the respondents’ power and authority, there is strong probability that they may influence witnesses or tamper with any evidence material to the case, and in order likewise to prevent any case of malfeasance and/or misfeasance, hence this Preventive Suspension,” it added.

Human trafficking

Lucky South 99 was raided and shuttered by law enforcers on June 4 on suspicion that it was involved in torture, human trafficking and scamming activities.

The raid led by the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) on Lucky South 99’s compound came after Chinese nationals filed charges at the Department of Justice against the company’s representative, Cassandra Li Ong, and 53 others, accusing them of trafficking and forcing them to work in the Pogo hub.

The PAOCC) rescued 207 people, including 127 Chinese, 23 Vietnamese, four Malaysians and three Burmese, in a raid on Lucky South 99’s hub in Barangay Sta. Cruz last June 4.

Later, PAOCC spokesperson Winston John Casio said operatives of the agency, prosecutors, and the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) found possible burial sites inside the Lucky South 99 facility.

He said the PAOCC has applied for search warrants to look for other burial grounds after receiving reports of deaths inside the Pogo compound.

According to PAOCC, it later obtained information linking Lucky South 99 and its supposed land developer Whirlwind to the Pogo hub of Zun Yuan and Baoful Land Development in Bamban town in nearby Tarlac province.

Clear evidence

The complaint filed by the DILG argued that Capil’s “neglect of duty is very clear when he signed/issued through Vital’s recommendation, a business permit for Lucky South 99 until Dec. 31, 2023, despite the impending expiration of its Pagcor license on Oct. 27, 2023.”

It said Capil also failed to act on the revocation of Lucky South 99’s business permit when its Pagcor license eventually expired.

“Mayor Capil also failed to act appropriately on the reports of criminal activities happening inside Lucky South 99’s premises. Notably, several validation requests and letters from the PNP concerning illegal activities such as serious illegal detention, cyber-related criminal activities, prostitution were left unacted upon by Mayor Capil,” the complaint said.

The inaction and non-performance of the town officials’ duties paved the way for the continuous operation of Lucky South 99 and “make them all liable for gross neglect of duty.”