Duterte to slay corruption monster in Pagcor

PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has been consistent expressing his frustration over dishonest and corrupt government employees and officials.

Early targets of Digong’s anti-corruption drive are the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Bureau of Customs (BOC), and Land Transportation Office (LTO)–the three “most corrupt” agencies in the country, according to him.

Earlier, Digong had also lambasted alleged corruption in the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor).

Government officials, he said, have been pocketing Pagcor earnings of about 135 billion every year. Digong vowed to put an end to this by using Pagcor earnings to provide free health care.

Pagcor is widely reported to be involved in irregularities in the past administrations but few – if any at all – have been investigated much less prosecuted.

Media reports are rife about how previous Pagcor officials have been fleecing millions – if not billions – off many big investors, exchanging license approvals for “endorsements” of local contractors for multi-billion casino projects. In turn, contractors pay huge fees to their endorsees on a monthly basis, spanning the length of the construction period.

Investigating past Pagcor officials is important to send strong message to investors behind current and future projects that this administration will not condone irregularities.

Among the scheduled projects are; Clark SunValley Resorts and Country Club at the Clark Freeport Zone, a $400-million mixed-use development of South Korean construction firm Donggwang Construction Co., Ltd. housing a casino, in 2017.

In Metro Manila, Solaire Resort and Casino’s Enrique Razon Jr. announced plans to build a 120-billion resort in Quezon City. Razon said construction may start mid-next year and could be finished in 2019.

In 2020, Travellers International’s Westside City Resorts World is also scheduled to open the fourth gaming resort in the Entertainment City. This will be the final phase of the development of the entertainment complex that already houses Solaire Resort and Casino, City of Dreams Manila, and Okada Manila.

Given the President’s intense drive against illegal drugs, we are hopeful that this administration will achieve many tangible results in its drive to root out corruption in the bureaucracy, encouraging investments in other areas of commerce as well.