When a Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) hub was raided in the town of Porac, Pampanga province last June, the rescue of 158 foreign nationals and 29 Filipino citizens working in this facility became its headline news.
However, that was far from the only exposé arising out of the raid. Authorities were also able to find documents listing former lawmaker and Cabinet member, Harry Roque, as the legal counsel of the illegal gambling business.
Philippine authorities raided the Lucky South 99 POGO hub in Porac last June in response to reports of criminal activity occurring within the facility. Among the crimes allegedly occurring include sex trafficking, torture, and online scams.
In fact, the Pampanga-based POGO was deemed to be “the worst” among all POGOs in the country according to the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC). Lucky South 99 was the most prolific in terms of torturing its workers and conducting online scams that tricked people into losing their money on the internet.
To give you an idea of the lawlessness that was happening within the POGO compound, when the Philippine National Police (PNP) raided Lucky South 99’s premises they found a Chinese man handcuffed to a bed, with visible bruises, saying he had not eaten in days. There were 187 other workers who were rescued from the facility, each one having a harrowing story about their respective time in the POGO hub.
PAOCC spokesperson Winston Casio told the media that from their group’s investigation, they had expected the police to arrest some 1,000 individuals from the raid. Instead, only 158 foreign nationals were recovered from the POGO compound; reports emerged that hundreds of foreign workers who lived at Lucky South 99 evaded arrest after leaving the compound before the police arrived.
It became the view of the PAOCC and even some Philippine senators that the Lucky South management were tipped-off about an impending police raid on their premises by an informant. This only showed that the Pampanga-based POGO had powerful allies who were well-placed to warn them about the operation.
This is why finding out the true extent of Harry Roque’s involvement with Lucky South 99, and with POGOs in general, is important. The Pampanga-based POGO has been determined to be among the worst in terms of criminality, and the leak demonstrated that it had at least one powerful ally providing it with protection.
Those with any involvement in their operations must be held accountable for the crimes that occurred there; especially if they are as high profile as Roque.
The PAOCC stated that Roque’s “footprints are everywhere” in their investigation into the Lucky South 99 POGO. Aside from documents listing the former Duterte government spokesperson as legal counsel for the Porac-based operation, he is also repeatedly mentioned in testimonies of workers rescued from the POGO.
In his defense, Roque argued that he is the legal representative for Whirlwind Corporation – a separate entity which leased the land Lucky South 99 is located on – rather than the POGO itself. However, though separate entities there have been links uncovered between the owners of Whirlwind and the Porac-based POGO.
Cassandra Ong, one of the main personalities in the ongoing POGO controversy, was revealed to be an authorized representative of Lucky South 99 while also having a controlling stake in Whirlwind. Ong was with Guo Hua Ping, better known as Alice Guo, when the three of them along with Guo’s sister eluded authorities and fled to Indonesia in July.
With Ong, a direct connection between Lucky South 99 and Whirlwind can be established. Given that Roque has already admitted to providing legal representation to Whirlwind, it is impossible for him not to have any knowledge of the Pampanga POGO hub.
Adding credence to the allegations, the chief of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) – Alejandro Tengco – himself revealed that Roque went to see him at his office, accompanied by Cassandra Ong, asking for favors for Lucky South 99.
The Pampanga-based POGO was experiencing financial difficulties and Roque had supported Ong in asking Tengco to allow her POGO to pay its unpaid taxes in installments. Lucky South’s arrears were allegedly no less than US$500,000 and Roque, acting as “legal head” of the said POGO, had lobbied PAGCOR on the firm’s behalf asking for leniency.
If indeed true, Tengco’s testimony will be no less than the “smoking gun” needed to prove Roque’s involvement with Lucky South 99. Yet questions remain if the Pampanga POGO is the full extent of the former presidential spokesperson’s involvement with POGOs.
It had also been revealed that Roque’s former “executive assistant”, “AR” dela Serna, also lived at Lucky South 99’s compound in Porac at one point – free of charge. Dela Serna told the House of Representatives’ hearing that he had met Cassandra Ong through his former boss, Roque, after which he was able to stay at the POGO compound rent-free.
Such a generous arrangement for your assistant could only be possible if Roque carried a lot of weight in Lucky South 99 himself.
The myriad of different links that Roque has with Cassandra Ong and Lucky South 99 are suspicious, at the very least, and merits further investigation. Adhering to the rule of law, the former presidential spokesperson must be thought of as innocent until proven guilty, but until we probe deeper into these incontrovertible connections, the suspicions towards Harry Roque are more than warranted.