President Duterte Orders PAGCOR To Report Government Officials, Spouses, Kids Staying In Casinos

President Rodrigo Duterte has ordered Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) Chair Andrea Domingo to strictly implement a prohibit all government officials from entering casinos.

The President said his ban would cover their wives or husbands and all their children.

“I do not want people lalo na sa gobyerno, papasok-pasok dyan sa (casino). O nasa gobyerno ka, yan lang ang kikitain mo, bakit ka magsugal doon?” said President Duterte in a transcript issued by Malacanang.

President Duterte recalled that during the time of the late President Ferdinand Marcos, government officials were forbidden from stepping into casinos.

Presidential Decree No. 1067-B, as amended by PD 1869 bans all government officials connected directly with the operation of the government or any of its agencies and members of the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines from staying or playing in casinos.

Despite the ban, PAGCOR has allowed some prominent government officials to play in casinos such as then Vice President Joseph Estrada in 1996 and then Land Transportation Office Chief Virgie Torres in 2013.

In 2001, former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo issued a memorandum reiterating the ban on government officials from playing in casinos.

Source: Politiko