In the course of the hearings of the Quad Committee, Sta. Rosa Rep. Dan Fernandez on Wednesday said their probe has unearthed a network of “powerful people” behind the interconnected operations among POGOs, illegal drug syndicates, extrajudicial killings and other host of other crimes.
In his opening statement at the start of the fourth hearing of the Quad Comm, Fernandez lamented the fact that the key personalities behind the criminal organization of POGOs continue to evade the long arms of the law.
“By now, there can be no doubt in anyone's mind that powerful people are behind this large-scale, multibillion peso criminal enterprise involving drug trafficking, POGOs, and extra-judicial killings,” Fernandez, chair of the House Committee on Public Safety, declared.
“The fact that several key personalities of POGO corporations have managed to evade the long arm of the law speaks volumes of the power they wield and the resources at their disposal,” he added.
Fernandez said the findings of the committee have firmly established that Chinese nationals obtained Filipino citizenship by fraudulent means, then proceeded to acquire vast landholdings through businesses disguised as Filipino-owned corporations.
“In the course of our inquiry, I believe that one thing will eventually be made clear: that drug money is the source of POGO money, and that POGO money is a source of criminal activities, including EJKs,” he stated.
Fernandez responded to those accusing the Quad Comm of playing politics, especially because the start and eventual proliferation of POGOs occurred during the term of former President Rodrigo Duterte, saying they will not stop the investigation no matter who is implicated.
“Hindi natin maiisantabi ang mga pangyayaring naganap sa nakaraang administrasyon ay patuloy natin nararamdaman sa kasalakuyang panahon. Akusahan man tayo na ang lahat ng ating ginagawa sa mga komiteng ito mula noon hangang ngayon at pagiimbestiga ng iba-ibang personalidad na natutukoy ng ebidensya at pangyayari ay may bahid politika,” he said.
“Be that as it may this quad committee will not stop, we will not even blink, we will not be affected,” he continued.
He also warned that even with the ban declared by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on the operations of POGOs during his last SONA, illegal POGOs may still proliferate as shown by the Aug. 31 raid of a hub in Lapu-Lapu City in Cebu where 160 Indonesians, Chinese and Burmese nationals were arrested.
“Sa pangyayaring ito ating makikita na mataas ang posibilidad ng paglaganap ng mga illegal na POGO sa kabila ng ban na iniutos ng ating Pangulo,” Fernandez said.
“Ang mga POGO operators ay nakapaglabas na ng bilyon-bilyong piso para sa pagtakbo ng kanilang negosyo sa ating bansa. Nakita natin na gagawin nila ang lahat, legal man o illegal, upang mabawi ang kanilang inilabas na pondo. Well-funded sila at nakita natin na kayang-kaya nilang lusutan ang ating mga awtoridad,” he added.
He also mentioned some of the powerful personalities behind POGOs, such as Hongjiang Yang, a sibling of Michael Yang who is a former presidential economic adviser of ex-President Duterte, and the former’s connection to Alice Guo, also known as Guo Hua Ping, POGO operator Yu Zheng Can and Gerald T. Cruz of Brickhartz Technology, a POGO service provider.
“These links alone do not mean that they are involved in illegal activities. And that is the reason why, at the proper time, I shall seek a motion to invite several key personalities to the succeeding hearings, and it will be up to them whether to use the opportunity to air their side of the issue,” Fernandez said.
Meanwhile, House Committee on Dangerous Drugs chair and Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers said the Quad Comm is focused on unraveling the web of extrajudicial killings, the collusion between a well-organized syndicate and government officials in the drug trade and the criminal activities linked to POGOs.
“In our previous hearings, serious allegations came to light. Witnesses claimed that former President Rodrigo Duterte was directly involved in the execution of Chinese drug personalities while they were detained in Davao,” Barbers said in his opening remarks.
“Such accusations, if proven true, reveal a systematic abuse of power and a deliberate elimination of individuals for financial gain, all under the pretext of maintaining public order,” he added.
For Manila Rep. Bienvenido “Benny” Abante, chair of the Committee on Human Rights, the testimonies gathered by the Quad Comm clearly indicates the interconnection among POGOs, illegal drugs trade and EJKs.
“The testimonies we have heard clearly illustrate the interconnectedness of wrongdoing, the domino effect of sin – of how evil begets evil. Kaya akma po na ang magiging focus ng ating hearing ngayon ay POGO; dahil dati, maraming nagsabi na hindi naman ito nakakasama. The gamblers are not Filipinos. Hindi mga kababayan natin ang nakokorap,” Abante said.
“But as we have discovered, this is simply not true. We have learned that the impact of gambling does not stop with the individual gambler. The money earned from POGOs, we have learned, supports and leads to other forms of wrongdoing. Fraud. Prostitution. Money laundering. Corruption!” he added.
“Hindi lang yun. May testigo tayo––si Lt. Col. Jovie Espenido––who informed us that drug and POGO money was used to fund the quota system in the previous administration’s war on drugs that resulted in thousands of deaths.”
“Sana po, in the course of our hearings, we can all finally open our eyes to the fact that the evil of gambling extends far beyond personal sin: it is a societal evil, one that can corrupt our country and destroy lives.”
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