SEN. Sherwin Gatchalian yesterday urged the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to stop giving “ayudas” or financial assistance to Filipinos who are involved in the operations of illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) and scam hubs.
In an interview with radio dzBB, Gatchalian said his office has received information that Filipinos who used to work in POGO hubs are now running scam operations after learning the “secrets” of the illegal trade.
He noted previous instances when Filipino workers claimed they were victims and were supposedly only forced to work in POGO facilities by their foreign employers.
After the shut down of POGO hubs, the Filipino workers were given livelihood packages by the DSWD to help them while they find new jobs.
Gatchalian said government assistance should not be given to Filipinos who are now running scam hubs.
“They should not be given any assistance anymore because they are no longer victims. They are now the ones doing it. The Filipinos who were caught, they are now the heads, the bosses. They have learned the trade while working in POGOs,” Gatchalian said in Filipino.
He said he will suggest to his brother, DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian, to stop giving financial assistance to Filipinos caught working in or operating scam hubs.
“They must also be charged because we cannot just free them after they were caught. Charges should be filed to prevent similar incidents from happening again),” he also said, referring to Filipino scam workers.
Gatchalian also called on law enforcement agencies to step up their operations against splinter POGO hubs, and urged establishments to immediately report to authorities if groups of foreigners or Filipinos are renting spaces or rooms in hotels and resorts and are setting up offices to make sure that they are not scam or illegal POGO hubs.
“I have observed, which is a sad thing, that our countrymen have learned how to scam other people. That’s why we see during police operations that there are more Filipinos arrested than foreign workers. That’s why this must serve as a warning to our countrymen not to get involved in scamming activities because they cannot play victims anymore since they will be jailed once caught,” he said.
