House leader cites 5 bills to tackle POGO crimes, EJK abuses

By Filane Mikee Cervantes, Philippine News Agency

FILE: House Quad Committee Chair and Surigao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Robert Ace Barbers. (Photo: House of Representatives of the Philippines/Facebook)

MANILA – The House Quad Committee (Quadcom) has turned its investigative findings into legislative action with the filing of five bills aimed at closing legal loopholes that allegedly enabled illicit activities linked to Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) and extrajudicial killings (EJKs) during the Duterte administration’s drug war.

In a news release on Wednesday, Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, Quadcom lead chair, said the series of hearings conducted by the mega-panel revealed how criminals and unscrupulous individuals or groups managed to use the “flaws, loopholes, and weaknesses” of some of the country’s existing laws to further their criminal activities.

“Sa isang simpleng pag-analisa, pinag-aralang maigi ng mga local at foreign crime syndicates ang mga kahinaan at butas ng ating mga batas at ginamit nila ito upang maisakatuparan ang kanilang mga illegal na gawain sa ating bansa (In a simple analysis, local and foreign crime syndicates carefully studied the weaknesses and loopholes in our laws and used them to carry out their illegal activities in our country),” Barbers said.

To address these legal gaps, Barbers said the Quadcom filed the following measures:

House Bill No. 10986: Classifying and penalizing extrajudicial killings as a heinous crime, while providing reparations for victims.

House Bill No. 10987: Prohibiting all forms of offshore gaming operations in the country, with severe penalties for violations.

House Bill No. 11043: Allowing civil forfeiture of unlawfully acquired real estate properties by foreign nationals.

House Bill No. 11117: Providing for the administrative cancellation of birth certificates fraudulently obtained by foreign nationals.

House Bill No. 10998: Punishing conspiracy and proposal to commit espionage.

Barbers said the Quadcom also has recommended at least 30 proposed amendments to strengthen existing laws and prevent past abuses from recurring.

He said the committee’s investigations were labor-intensive, involving extensive research, gathering resource persons, and analyzing critical documents.

“Napakadali lang para sa mga kritiko, lalo na iyung mga bayaran, na sirain o gibain ang ngalan at nagawa ng Quadcom (It’s easy for critics, especially those who are paid, to tarnish or undermine the work of Quadcom),” Barbers said.

The Quadcom probe into extrajudicial killings uncovered what Barbers described as institutional impunity and abuse of power during the Duterte administration.

Duterte, during a Nov. 13 hearing, admitted key elements of his administration’s anti-drug campaign, including the existence of the so-called Davao Death Squad and the Davao template of reward system for police officers involved in EJKs.

Duterte assumed “full legal responsibility” for the deadly war against illegal drugs.

Barbers also underscored the illicit operations of Empire 999, a real estate firm owned by Chinese nationals posing as Filipino citizens, which was found to have links to illegal drugs, money laundering, and organized crime activities facilitated by POGOs.

“Sa ating initial na imbestigasyon dito sa Empire 999, nakita natin na ang modus operandi ng mga POGO ay gumamit ng Pinoy at Tsinoy na dummies bilang nominal owners (In our initial investigation into Empire 999, we discovered that POGOs use Filipino and Chinese dummies as nominal owners),” he said.