- 2 years ago
- #theatomaraullospecials
- #pogoland
Aired (July 21, 2024): Sa patuloy na pag-usbong ng mga Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators o POGO sa Pilipinas, saksihan si Atom Araullo sa paghahanap ng madilim na katotohanan sa likod ng kanilang mga operasyon. Ibinunyag ng mga dating manggagawa rito ang mga naranasan nilang pang-aabuso, pananakit, at human trafficking--ngunit ano nga ba ang totoong nagaganap sa likod ng mga halos nakakubling operasyon ng POGO? Panoorin ang video.
Watch 'The Atom Araullo Specials' every last Sunday of the month on GMA Network, hosted by award-winning broadcast journalist Atom Araullo. Subscribe to youtube.com/gmapublicaffairs for our full episodes.
#TheAtomAraulloSpecials
#POGOLAND
Watch 'The Atom Araullo Specials' every last Sunday of the month on GMA Network, hosted by award-winning broadcast journalist Atom Araullo. Subscribe to youtube.com/gmapublicaffairs for our full episodes.
#TheAtomAraulloSpecials
#POGOLAND
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FunTranscript
00:00You
00:30In the past few years, we have witnessed the increase of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators
00:38or POGO in different parts of the country.
00:41This is accompanied by the promise of prosperity because it will bring a lot of money into our economy.
00:47But now, it has become a symbol of crime, treason, and abuse of thousands of people.
00:54A new raid was carried out at the POGO Hub in Porac, Pampanga last night.
00:59There were dozens of computers, cellphones, blank SIM cards, and scripts written in Chinese.
01:08Behind the secret and secretive POGO compound, many Filipinos and Banyagas were kidnapped
01:14and forced to be involved in scam operations.
01:17We were also scared when someone raided our place.
01:22Who's that? Who's that?
01:26The one in your hand, the one you tied.
01:28Take it out, take it out.
01:30The one in your hand.
01:31I thought it was the police, so I shouted.
01:34Then they came.
01:36Gradually, the dark truth was revealed behind the machine industry of POGO.
01:42Who should be responsible?
01:44And how did we end up like this?
01:52Wow, look at this place.
01:56They should not have started this in the first place.
01:59In the past few months, there was news of a deepening controversy about POGO
02:16or online transactions for Banyagas clients run by Chinese nationals,
02:23partners of other Banyagas.
02:26Some of them became a scam hub.
02:33But aside from the scams, there were many other crimes happening inside the illegal POGO.
02:44Who's that? Who's that?
02:47One man was caught walking while posing in the bed frame.
02:53Closed his eyes.
02:56And asked his grandfather.
02:59What's his story?
03:08Images were viral and went viral in the public.
03:12But each one of us has a connection to this issue.
03:18POGO hub. POGO hub. POGO hub. POGO.
03:21And it's often found in our hands, our cellphones.
03:28Like many of you, I also receive messages from SMS and other messaging apps
03:34that suddenly look like scams.
03:37I've always wondered what will happen if I send messages and send links.
03:45So what we did is, we used a phone and I collected all the messages from the past few months.
03:54And I will try to copy their offers.
03:59Let's see what will happen.
04:01For some, the scam messages are just fake like this.
04:06Delivery package, raffle, and more.
04:14But it's already a part of a large and organized criminal operation.
04:20One thing I noticed is that the links that were sent to me a few weeks ago,
04:25that I'm still trying to access,
04:30it's not reachable anymore.
04:32It's just active for a certain period of time.
04:35When it comes to scams,
04:37maybe I can learn about the mode of deception of criminals
04:42and how it is connected to POGO.
04:47This link is a scam from law enforcement agents that we know.
04:56Let's try to open it.
04:57What will happen?
05:04So this number is plus 855,
05:09which means it's based where?
05:16The answer is Cambodian.
05:22To create a game icon, please send account number.
05:26Account name.
05:28I don't have an account.
05:38Thousands of Filipinos are targeted by these scams every day.
05:45I was sent a screenshot of apps.
05:53I don't have this kind of apps.
05:55I think we should not answer yet.
05:58Just say no.
06:00I already said no earlier.
06:02Later, later.
06:04Let's wait for a while before we answer.
06:07But this process can't be forced
06:11because our SIM card is still new.
06:13This SIM card is not yet on the radar of scammers.
06:19I feel like it's a long process.
06:22I can...
06:24Let's see how far this will go.
06:34Are you wondering who and where these messages came from?
06:39Most of the time, it came from a large scam hub.
06:49To see their hidden world,
06:53I visited the closed Pogo Hub in Bambantarlak
06:57with the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission or PAOC and local police.
07:03March 13, when PAOC raided Pogo.
07:06After receiving a tip that there are victims of illegal detention and torture inside the facility.
07:24Their rescue reached 800 Filipinos.
07:29Do you have passports?
07:31Many of them have been working here for several years.
07:34They have been working here for several years as scammers.
07:39Zuniwan Technology, Inc. is the operator of Pogo.
07:48You know, it's very refreshing to see this kind of structure.
07:54It's a compound.
07:56To be honest, it's good.
07:58But it's in the middle of rice fields.
08:00So, it looks out of place.
08:06In fact, it's a very big place.
08:09The former occupants left gold cards like this so that they can go around.
08:17Because gambling is prohibited in China,
08:21their operations are brought by gambling bosses from other countries.
08:26One of them is the Philippines.
08:31In the administration of the former President Rodrigo Duterte,
08:35Pogo's operation succeeded.
08:38It's an opportunity for the country's economy to thrive.
08:43Now, Pogo,
08:45I will assure under my oath of office as President of this Republic,
08:52as elected by you,
08:54that Pogo,
08:56insofar as we are here,
08:58it's clean.
09:00It's a game for the other side.
09:04In 2018, Pogo paid a total of P2.36 billion.
09:12It rose to P7.87 billion in 2022.
09:18It's like a small barangay.
09:20Or exclusive village.
09:2210 hectares of Pogo in Bamban.
09:35But the center of the operation,
09:38So, what is this, sir?
09:40This is a scum farm.
09:43Aha.
09:44This is a scum farm.
09:46Aha.
09:48The so-called scum farm.
09:52In an office,
09:54computers are scattered around.
09:58According to the authorities,
10:00although Pogo's business should be online gambling,
10:04in recent years,
10:06some have operated as a scum hub.
10:08That's why the license was completely lost.
10:10Before, I thought that the scum would send texts.
10:14Those who only work in their houses,
10:16maybe three or four people,
10:18but if you see a place like this,
10:21if the authorities guessed it right,
10:23the business of scamming is this organized and extensive.
10:28As of now,
10:3068 Pogos have been closed,
10:32while 42 still have licenses.
10:36Not all Pogos
10:37have been proven guilty of illegal activities.
10:41But it seems that business is good
10:44for those behind this operation in Bamban.
11:03All of these are recovered.
11:05This is solid.
11:07This is the house of the so-called Big Bosses of Pogo.
11:12This is a black hole.
11:26Wow.
11:28A lot of cars were left inside the compound.
11:35Some of them are luxury vehicles
11:37that were customized to be bulletproof,
11:41like this one.
11:46According to Paok,
11:48a VIP lives here.
11:51This is Huang Ziyang,
11:53the so-called Big Boss of some Pogos.
11:59This is Huang Ziyang,
12:01the so-called Big Boss.
12:08This is the place where the Big Boss lives.
12:13Wow.
12:16Wow, look at this place.
12:17Wow, look at this place.
12:35So, it's possible that some of the most powerful bosses of this Pogo
12:40sometimes sit in the living room
12:44that we're building.
12:45Some of the people we're sitting with
12:48are old acquaintances
12:52who are possibly sitting here.
12:56We just don't know who they are.
12:59Do you think they are former high-ranking officials?
13:02I don't know.
13:06This is their kitchen.
13:09As you can see,
13:11this is the storage.
13:13This is the big refrigerator.
13:15This is the big refrigerator.
13:17You know, one of the signallers who used to live here for a long time,
13:21if you can see his collection of wines and spirits,
13:26we checked the price.
13:28There are bottles here that cost up to 1 million.
13:32It's surprising.
13:35And not just one bottle that we're talking about.
13:46What's down here?
13:48There's a karaoke here.
13:50And then there's a panic room and a tunnel.
13:55There's a door here.
13:57As you can see, this is going straight to the tunnel.
14:00It's going to the tunnel?
14:02Yes, it's going to another building.
14:06What's this?
14:08That's the panic room.
14:10What's a panic room?
14:11When you go here,
14:13there are provisions where you can eat.
14:16You can't open it right away.
14:29It's surprising,
14:31the luxury that we see here in these villas inside Pogo Hub.
14:38If I ever felt that this is not a fly-by-night operation,
14:44it means that it's not temporary.
14:46They might plan to stay here for a long time.
14:49This kind of large and complicated operation is not easy to build.
14:55According to Paok,
14:57the roots of the illegal Pogos are deep in the Philippines.
15:01While we were on the property,
15:03we managed to deliver the bills to the electricity of the facility.
15:08It's still P820,000. Why is it still so big?
15:11Why is there still an Alice Guo?
15:13What if it was raided during that time?
15:16That there seems to be clear documentary evidence
15:20linking the local government of Banpan,
15:23specifically the mayor,
15:25to the operations.
15:27After Pogo was raided in Banban, Tarlac,
15:30the mayor of the town, Alice Leal Guo, became the center of attention.
15:35Your Honor, I don't know anymore.
15:40Aside from the fact that Pogo is just behind the municipality,
15:45the land where the facility is being built
15:48was previously owned by Guo.
15:51It was previously owned by Guo.
15:55He sold it to Baofu Land Development Incorporated,
15:59where the mayor used to be a partner.
16:02I bought the land from private people.
16:05I bought the installment from them.
16:08When Baofu entered, the Chinese investors entered.
16:12That became my biggest asset to them.
16:15Hi, good morning.
16:17According to the authorities,
16:18Guo's partner in Baofu Land Development is the Chinese fugitive,
16:22Huang Ziyang,
16:24who is said to be the owner of a big villa in Banban.
16:28Madam Chairman,
16:30Guo could be accused of knowing something about the illegal Pogo.
16:36His wealth came from the business.
16:39Pogo has no involvement.
16:43According to Guo's statement of assets, liabilities, and net worth in December 2023,
16:52the three dump trucks amounted to 2 million pesos,
16:56a 60-million-peso helicopter that he had previously sold,
17:01and more than 100 million pesos in cash.
17:04His liabilities or debts amounted to almost 200 million pesos.
17:11Hi, guys.
17:13Sorry, there's no more voice.
17:15In the continued investigation of the Senate,
17:17the very personality of the mayor was also investigated.
17:21Number 2, Tapalotas!
17:24Mayor Guo ran and won in 2022 after being endorsed by the former mayor.
17:31Thank you very, very much.
17:33But before his career in politics,
17:36there was not much information about Guo.
17:40He did not have a hospital record of birth,
17:43and when the birth certificate was registered, he was already 17 years old.
17:48Did your brother...
17:50Many doubts about Guo were added when asked in the Senate where he was born,
17:57grew up, and studied.
17:59Your Honor, he gave me a tutorial.
18:03We lived on a farm.
18:05But in another Senate hearing,
18:08Senator Sherwin Gatchalian denied that Mayor Guo was not a true homeschooled.
18:14He studied in a private school in Quezon City from Grade 1 to Grade 3.
18:21Not long after,
18:23an explosive revelation was released by the National Bureau of Investigation.
18:27Fingerprints of Mayor Alice Guo and Guo Huaping,
18:32a Chinese national,
18:34arrived in the Philippines on January 12, 2003.
18:38The same, one and the same person.
18:41Fingerprint, dactyloscopy is an infallible science of identification.
18:46No two persons, even twins, will have the same fingerprints.
18:52So, the dactyloscopy examination is conclusive.
18:56Because of this,
18:58Senator Risa Ontiveros believes that Mayor Guo is not a true Filipino citizen.
19:04And it is possible that Guo is just using the name and identity of the true Alice Leal Guo.
19:11Guo's lawyers denied that the Mayor stole his identity.
19:17They are just waiting for the opportunity to question and debunk the evidence
19:23against their client.
19:26We cannot say the basis of those fingerprints.
19:30We have not received any official verification or report from any of the government agencies
19:37for us to know or to at least give a comment on it.
19:43But let's go back to the scam farms.
19:46Thousands of people are needed to run the operation.
19:50There are people from other countries like China, Vietnam, and Malaysia.
19:56But there are also Filipinos.
20:00Many of them were promised a job in a call center or in online gaming.
20:06But they will go home as a scammer.
20:10And they are even punished if they do not comply or meet the quota.
20:21Hello Nestor, how are you?
20:24I'm fine.
20:26Thank you for your time.
20:28I met Nestor, a Filipino who worked in Bambanpogo in 2020.
20:34What was your experience?
20:36I became a spammer.
20:40We were given numbers that we would text.
20:45For example, if we text a wrong number,
20:51we will start exchanging information if the person is interested.
20:58So there's a story right away.
21:00For example, you will text a wrong number.
21:04Yes, you get the wrong number.
21:06That's how clients are sometimes.
21:08Then we will exchange information.
21:11I see.
21:13But who are you spamming?
21:15Are they Filipinos?
21:17No, most of them are from the UK.
21:20But we have a script that we follow.
21:35In the love scam that Nestor was assigned,
21:37they were taking the inside of their target until it trusts them.
21:44We get the information about the client's age,
21:48what his job is, and where he lives.
21:51Then we will transfer it to the CSR or Hotshot.
21:57They are the ones who will gain trust.
22:00They will invest the client in crypto.
22:04Why were you the one assigned to spam?
22:08That's how it is.
22:10If you spam on the cell phone first,
22:13that's the first thing they will ask you to do.
22:16We were given 20 phones to chat.
22:26Nestor was only in Pogo for the first week.
22:28When he arrived in Pogo,
22:30he witnessed the abuse of a foreign boss to the employees.
22:37While we were working, the boss suddenly came in.
22:41He was with two supermen, if you will.
22:45They were big.
22:47He was holding our Vietnamese guy's TN.
22:51Then he hit him on the side.
22:58Nestor was shocked.
23:00He was already inside the facility.
23:05We realized that we were not allowed to go out.
23:09They did not want us to go out.
23:17In fear, Nestor and a friend made a plan to escape to the scam hub.
23:23We could not find a way out.
23:28We could only go to the second floor.
23:31At first, we looked for a way out.
23:35They told us that we could jump from there.
23:38We packed all our belongings and brought them to the window.
23:43Then he suddenly jumped.
23:45I was deciding if I should follow him.
23:49I told him that I was going to jump.
23:52I told him to go ahead.
23:56When I jumped, I lost consciousness.
24:01My face was covered with blood.
24:04Nestor managed to escape and his wounds healed.
24:10But they did not report to the authorities.
24:14On our first day, there was a Chinese there.
24:16He was talking to the police inside.
24:21We thought that if we were going to report to the police,
24:25we might as well go back inside.
24:27That was the plan.
24:29We were so scared.
24:31We heard that there was a mayor there.
24:33He said that there was someone in charge of the hub.
24:37What did you get?
24:40We got a swimming pool.
24:41He was flexing the hill in the water.
24:46It was our break time.
25:04And what is the story of the people working in the scam farms?
25:08According to the authorities, there are more of them compared to the Filipinos.
25:16Alias Tony is a Malaysian national who was also captured in Bambang.
25:22At first, he thought that his illegal work in the Philippines was legal.
25:27But like Nestor, he became a part of POGO.
25:31So you're basically a prisoner?
25:34Yes, in the park.
25:37Did you try going out?
25:39Yes, I tried but it's not allowed.
25:42According to Tony,
25:44he used to have co-workers who were tortured
25:48if they couldn't reach the quota for the scam.
25:51How did that make you feel that you were basically lying to these people for their money?
25:59No choice.
26:01If you didn't reach the quota, it will be a punishment for them.
26:07So there's a quota for you guys?
26:09Yeah, yeah, of course.
26:11How much is your quota?
26:13I think 300,000.
26:15300,000 rand per month.
26:18I think it's 1 million pesos.
26:22After getting to know Nestor and Tony,
26:25I tried to contact some of the text scams
26:29that one by one entered our cell phone.
26:32The last time I talked to this account on Telegram,
26:36we didn't receive anything.
26:38But right after messaging him or her,
26:41it looks like my number has entered their system
26:45and suddenly someone messaged me.
26:48So this is the message.
26:51Message.
26:53So there.
26:55I said, how can I join?
26:57He replied in English.
27:00To create a game icon, please send phone number, account number, and account name.
27:06He asked, where do you want to deposit money?
27:11Let's do this one first.
27:13Oh my gosh, this is the scary part.
27:17I need to put my phone number.
27:21Okay.
27:23So this is the scary part because they might get access to my account.
27:31What are we going to do?
27:34So I'm trying to deposit money using a local e-wallet.
27:40What happened was,
27:44I was going to deposit money using the link they sent me.
27:51I thought the scam would happen after I send the money.
27:58But when we clicked on the link,
28:02I was still trying to send the money.
28:05After I sent the money,
28:07now I can't access my e-wallet.
28:16There.
28:18So I've been trying to get in for a while now.
28:21Now I can't access it.
28:23I'll try to reset the PIN.
28:26This is a reminder that it's easy to fall for a scam
28:30by simply contacting or clicking on the link from the scammers.
28:33I was surprised.
28:38I thought that their scam is not that sophisticated.
28:46My understanding of how scams are done became clearer.
28:51And the individuals behind it had a face,
28:55who were also possible victims.
28:57Don't go too far.
29:00Don't go too far.
29:03Don't go too far.
29:05Don't go too far.
29:08On June 5,
29:10another bogus scam was raided by the authorities.
29:16It was only 23 kilometers away from the facility in Bamban.
29:21The Lucky South 99 Corporation was attacked by the police and gunmen,
29:26accompanied by the abuse reports within it.
29:29Inside, the employees were shocked.
29:35More than 180 foreign nationals and more than 50 Filipinos were injured.
29:42But no masterminds were caught.
29:45And the bosses of POGO, like Huang Ziyang, were being investigated.
29:51When night fell,
29:54it became clear that it was more likely to be abuse and crime
30:00that was hidden inside POGO.
30:24The SWD?
30:27He has been detained in this room for more than 10 days.
30:44Suddenly, a Chinese national came out of a building,
30:48posing in a bed frame.
30:51His eyes were closed and he was begging to his grandfather.
30:56His back and arms were full of sweat and cigarette butts.
31:01And he could hardly open his eyes.
31:05Cut it. Cut the back.
31:08Don't cut your hand.
31:10Okay.
31:12Okay.
31:16Okay, thank you.
31:18I want to find this man.
31:25The license for POGO Hub was issued by Lucky South 99,
31:29but it continued to operate as a scam hub.
31:33This is the POGO Hub in Porac, Pampanga,
31:36which was raided by various law enforcement groups.
31:39We are still outside the compound,
31:42but the place is very secure,
31:47because the walls are high,
31:49and it is surrounded by a razor wire fence.
31:53You cannot see inside,
31:55you cannot enter,
31:57but you will pass through this gate.
32:00Hello, sir.
32:03We will go inside.
32:04We will go inside, okay?
32:0746 buildings need to be built by investigators
32:11in a 10-hectare compound.
32:14This building is one of the new areas
32:19where the operatives will enter.
32:22As you can imagine, it's a big compound,
32:24so it cannot be done in one day.
32:34It looks like the authorities came here suddenly.
32:39What you will get is a call center operation,
32:43because there are a lot of computers and gadgets.
32:47This is the evidence that the forensics need to investigate
32:53to find out exactly what is being done here.
32:59This room alone has around 200 computers
33:02with 200 workers, operators or scammers,
33:06equals 200 victims.
33:09This is just one portion of the entire complex.
33:19I used a translation app
33:22to see what is being said in this document.
33:26It says, basically,
33:28the public security has technical means
33:32to recover the carrier data,
33:34so before leaving the building or industrial park,
33:37it is necessary to hand over all mobile phones
33:40to the logistics and smash them,
33:42so as to prevent anyone from recovering the data
33:45stored by the mobile phone carrier.
33:47I don't know what this document is all about,
33:52but it's very suspicious.
34:01Like Pogo in Bamban,
34:04the facility in Porac was designed as a closed community
34:08so that no one inside would have to leave.
34:14These are the dorms.
34:23In the dorms,
34:25some baseball bats,
34:27brass knuckles,
34:29and other devices are stolen.
34:34There are also bloodstains
34:37on the walls and ceilings of a room.
34:42Sir, are you also looking for possible bloodstains?
34:52In one of the bunk beds,
34:54they found a suspected bloodstain
34:59on the comforter or duvet.
35:05Hey, who's that?
35:07Lift it up.
35:09Thank you.
35:11Aside from the scams,
35:13what other heinous crimes
35:16are happening inside these buildings?
35:18Don't touch that.
35:20Don't touch that.
35:23Here it is.
35:25Here it is.
35:27It's still there.
35:29Is it still there?
35:31A month after the rescue of the man
35:33who was still in the bed frame,
35:35we found him here in a facility in Paok.
35:40We will hide him under the name Wilson.
35:43For the first time,
35:45he made a media appearance
35:48to tell us about his experience.
35:53Okay, thank you.
35:55According to Wilson,
35:57he was kidnapped by two men
35:59while walking in Pasay City on June 2.
36:02I was tied up in Pasay City,
36:06and they drove me to that place.
36:09On the 3rd,
36:11they took my phone
36:14and wanted to steal my wallet.
36:17Then they blackmailed me.
36:19After that,
36:20they wanted to use my identity to borrow money.
36:23In the end, I couldn't get the money.
36:25Then they asked for money from my family.
36:27How much?
36:29First, they said 30 yuan.
36:31Then they added 80 yuan.
36:33Did your family give you money?
36:35My family had a video
36:37to persuade me to be safe.
36:39But they had already beaten me up.
36:41They didn't dare to make a video.
36:43So my family refused to pay.
36:45I told them that if it was for money,
36:47I would give them some money.
36:48But if it was for something else,
36:50I wouldn't give them any money.
36:58Illegal robberies are becoming more and more common.
37:02It has also become the center of other heinous crimes
37:06such as kidnap for ransom,
37:08human trafficking,
37:10and torture.
37:11Help me get out of here.
37:13Help me get out of here.
37:16Wilson filed several cases
37:19against the operators
37:21of Lucky South 99 Corporation.
37:23I want to arrest them now.
37:29In another closed case in Pasay,
37:32which has also become Paok's office,
37:34Director Winston Cascio showed me
37:37the syndicate's suspected torture chamber.
37:41They have bats and tasers.
37:43Just imagine,
37:45they have baseball bats.
37:47And people are thrown here.
37:50Look, there are blood spurts here.
37:54We didn't remove them.
37:56Why do they need to be tortured?
37:58Two things.
38:00One, they kidnap people.
38:02Why do they kidnap people?
38:04Those who gamble,
38:06those who don't have money,
38:08are in debt to loan sharks.
38:09If they can't pay,
38:11they are sold here.
38:13Paok also said
38:15that many of the victims of illegal gambling
38:17don't have proper papers
38:19to enter the country.
38:21How can they enter the country
38:23without proper documentation?
38:26Now, that is a question
38:28best asked to other agencies of government.
38:31Why?
38:33They will enter here,
38:35like here, the people that we encountered in Pora.
38:37They've been here in the Philippines two years,
38:39how did that happen?
38:41Just like other POGO hubs that I've visited,
38:44the facilities here are still complete.
38:47There are places to work,
38:50eat,
38:52shop,
38:55and have fun.
39:02Just like the gigantic KTV
39:05on the ground floor of Gusali.
39:07Director, they seem to be studying
39:09how to set up a hub like this.
39:11This really has a template.
39:13They want to control people's mobility.
39:16Bear in mind, Tom,
39:18that if that happens,
39:21people can complain,
39:24they can tell stories,
39:26but they don't want that.
39:28Casho thinks
39:30that POGO should be closed
39:32or phased out
39:34because of the problems it causes.
39:36If true,
39:37the Chinese Embassy in Manila
39:40will also be a call to the government.
39:43How about the income?
39:45Because the people who say
39:47that we need POGO
39:49are saying that their income
39:51comes from this kind of operation.
39:54What do you think about that?
39:56I'm not an economist,
39:58but the way I look at the figures,
40:00it doesn't add up.
40:02It doesn't add up.
40:04Given the social cost,
40:05I don't think a few billion pesos
40:08would suffice
40:10for all the problems we're getting
40:12from all of these scum farms.
40:15As the Senate investigates
40:17the illegal POGO,
40:21Mayor Jaime Capil,
40:23is the only one,
40:25especially Mabunyag,
40:27who only recently received a report
40:29from Capil about the abuse
40:31inside Lucky South 99.
40:33But you didn't go inside.
40:35We didn't go inside,
40:37Mr. Chairman.
40:38So there was no checking?
40:40That's what really happened,
40:42that they didn't let us in.
40:44Maybe that's why we didn't get a report
40:46because we didn't see any crime,
40:48Your Honor.
40:50You really can't see any crime
40:52if you're outside, right, Mayor?
40:54If you're outside,
40:56you really can't see the crime.
40:58If the team insisted,
41:00we might be the ones to blame.
41:02Madam Chairman,
41:03we're investigating Mayor Guo,
41:05who was suspended as mayor
41:07by the Office of the Ombudsman.
41:09He and 13 others were charged
41:11by the Human Trafficking Department
41:13of Justice.
41:15First of all,
41:17what is the mayor's fault
41:19in illegal trafficking?
41:21He's just a mayor,
41:23he just issued a mayor's permit.
41:25What does he have to do
41:27with the operations inside POGO?
41:29He was never involved in POGO.
41:31If he had participation
41:33in POGO,
41:35he would have owned the land.
41:37But Bawfulan,
41:39you must understand,
41:41is different from POGO operation.
41:43It's 100% different.
41:45Meanwhile,
41:47the investigation
41:49into the mastermind
41:51of the POGO raids
41:53in Bamban and Porak
41:55is still ongoing.
41:57This is Huang Ziyang.
42:00Police!
42:02Inside a search warrant,
42:05several residential villas
42:07were entered by POGO
42:09in Clark, Pampanga.
42:14This is where Huang Ziyang
42:16and a few other big bosses
42:18of POGO are staying.
42:20There are a lot of big houses
42:22in this leisure center.
42:24POGO suspects
42:26that some of the so-called
42:28masterminds live here.
42:30Some POGOs were raided
42:32last week.
42:34The houses are being searched one by one
42:36but so far,
42:38they haven't found what they're looking for.
42:41We reached several foreign nationals
42:43in the area.
42:55But inside the big villas,
42:57there are no more people.
43:00The only thing left
43:02are empty residences.
43:05It looks like
43:07they're just about to leave.
43:09Some of the big bosses
43:11are being held here in Singapore.
43:13That's why they're staying here.
43:15We got their bills
43:17in Pantana.
43:19Most likely,
43:21they're staying here.
43:28Huang Ziyang
43:30is the business partner
43:32of Mayor Alice Goh.
43:34She wanted to go to China
43:36for other crimes.
43:38Do you think she's still here in the Philippines?
43:40Yes, she's still here in the Philippines
43:42because she doesn't have documents anymore.
43:44We know that
43:46her passport was canceled
43:48in China.
43:50Why does she seem to have
43:52the impression that
43:54she's always one step ahead?
43:55Or maybe
43:57she's just pretending?
43:59What I can see is
44:01that they have a lot of resources.
44:03They have money.
44:05They can buy their network.
44:07That's what I can see
44:09as their asset.
44:11Do you also discount
44:13that they have influence
44:15in law enforcement
44:17or in officials
44:19who have influence?
44:21We don't discount that.
44:23That's what we're studying.
44:25Taliwasa Ipinangakong Pag-unlat
44:27is the target
44:29of the POGOs
44:31that are being investigated.
44:33The question is,
44:35who will be responsible for this?
44:37The POGOs
44:39are not neglecting
44:41the illegal POGOs.
44:44I'm not defending
44:46the illegal POGOs.
44:48I'm supporting
44:50the license
44:52that we were given
44:53back in 2006.
44:55But now,
44:57we only have 43.
44:59In another statement,
45:01Pag-gor said
45:03that there was a former government official
45:05who was the godfather
45:07of the illegal POGOs.
45:10The Bureau of Immigration
45:12assured the Senate
45:14that they will investigate
45:16the Tila Modus Operandi
45:18so that foreigners
45:20can enter and work in the scam hubs.
45:21It seems like
45:23some of the POGO bosses
45:25got in through this Modus Operandi.
45:28Is the Bureau exercising
45:30any kind of oversight
45:32on all of these visas?
45:34We have a derogatory check
45:37on our end
45:39before we issue the
45:41approval of the visa.
45:43But what else
45:45does the public not know
45:47about the POGO issue?
45:49For a long time,
45:51the POGOs have been here.
45:53Why do we only know now
45:55that this is what's happening inside?
45:57Well, I couldn't answer
45:59for the previous administration.
46:02I was not privy
46:04to the intelligence packets
46:06and all that were given to them.
46:08But I'm sure there were reports.
46:10Now, it reached us
46:12so we're acting on it.
46:14The investigation is not yet complete
46:16to find out
46:18who are really behind
46:19the illegal POGOs.
46:23It's not just the syndicates
46:25but also the officials
46:27who are possible protectors
46:29and are helping here.
46:32For now,
46:34we need to follow the evidence,
46:36listen to the victims,
46:40and remain vigilant.
46:44Let's not let this issue
46:46be forgotten.
46:50I am Ato Maraulyo.
46:52Good afternoon.
47:49For more UN videos visit www.un.org
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