Manila: The Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) is aiming for the arrest and deportation of all individuals associated with illegal Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) by the end of 2025, or potentially even sooner.

According to Philippines News Agency, PAOCC spokesperson Winston Casio revealed that over 1,000 POGO workers currently detained by government authorities are set to be deported within the next two to three weeks. This move follows the issuance of Executive Order (EO) 74 by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on November 5, 2024, which mandates an immediate ban on POGOs, internet gaming, and other offshore gaming operations in the country.

During the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon briefing on state-run PTV-4, Casio stated that approximately 899 foreign nationals involved in illegal POGOs are held at the PAOCC's detention facility in Pasay City. Additionally, an estimated 200 to 300 individuals remain in the custody of the Bureau of Immigration (BI). He noted that since January, more than 1,000 individuals have been neutralized, leaving over 9,000 still at large based on BI records.

Casio emphasized the government's comprehensive strategy, expressing confidence in eliminating the remaining illegal POGO workers by the end of the year or earlier. The PAOCC is working in close collaboration with the BI and the Department of Justice's Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking to expedite the deportation process.

The public can anticipate the mass deportation of more than 1,000 illegal POGO workers within the month. The detained foreign nationals hail from countries including Myanmar, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and China. Casio reassured that efforts to target POGO "remnants" will persist relentlessly by the PAOCC and other involved agencies.