165 Chinese from Bamban POGO deported

Some 165 Chinese who allegedly worked illegally at a Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hub in Bamban, Tarlac were deported on Tuesday. 

According to a report by Jun Veneracion in “24 Oras”, the deported foreigners were workers of the Zun Yuan Technology Incorporated which was raided by authorities two months ago. 

The arrested POGO workers were handcuffed with plastic wires on their way to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 for their deportation to Shanghai, China. 

They are the third batch of POGO workers from Bamban to be deported for being classified by Philippine authorities as “undesirable aliens,”  undocumented, and overstaying. 

“Though they were arrested inside a POGO hub in Bamban, but mostly ang ginagawa kasi nila is scamming (most of what they are doing is scamming),” said Gilbert Cruz, Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission executive director. 

There were supposedly 167 Chinese nationals to be deported, but a female Chinese had a pending estafa case here in the country. 

Immigration spokesperson Dana Sandoval said 165 were deported.

"We found out na may derogatory record 'yung dalawa. So they were removed from the flight. May local and pending case sila here in the Philippines so we would have to wait for the resolution of that before the deportation can be implemented," Sandoval said on Kapihan sa Manila Bay.

There are only 50 Chinese POGO workers from Bamban who have yet to be deported. 

The PAOCC said that China volunteered to shoulder this time the deportation of their citizens who are involved in various scams. 

“Dito naka air condition unit, maayos ang pakain sa kanila, dahil ang trato natin sa kanila biktima. Pero doon pag-apak na pag-apak sa Shanghai, kriminal, kulong,” said Winston John Casio, PAOCC spokesperson. 

(Here, they have an air conditioning unit and were provided with food, because we treated them as victims. But once they enter Shanghai, they will be considered criminals and will be imprisoned.) 

The PAOCC is currently monitoring other POGO hubs in Metro Manila, Central Luzon, and Calabarzon. 

“So far lahat ng ni-raid namin na mga POGO hubs ay puro illegal, scamming activities ang ginagawa nila, so we expect the same sa mga natitira siguro,” said Cruz. 

(So far, all the POGO hubs we raided were illegal and have done scamming activities, so we expect the same for the rest.) —Vince Ferreras/NB/AOL, GMA Integrated News