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PAGCOR taps Development Academy of the Philippines for reorganization push
The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) today, 19 September, announced another major move towards the privatization of its casinos by partnering with the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP) in facilitating its reorganization process. PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco said they tapped DAP’s technical assistance to comply with the requirements of the Governance Commission for GOCCs (GCG) in the implementation of its Compensation and Position Classification System or CPCS which is needed prior to privatization. “We thank the Development Academy of the Philippines for being a prime mover of competency building in government,” Mr. Tengco said. “We need their help to comply with the (documentary) requirements of the GCG and in our efforts to eventually implement the CPCS that our employees have been eagerly waiting for,” he said. Tengco made the remarks after he and DAP president and CEO Atty. Engelbert Caronan Jr. signed the memorandum of agreement for PAGCOR’s reorganization at the New Coast Hotel in Manila last 12 September. PAGCOR Vice President for Human Resource and Development Group Angelito Domingo and DAP Vice President for Mindanao Dr. Mark Lemuel Garcia also signed the agreement. Tengco said he also wants to engage DAP in the facilitation and conduct of training for PAGCOR officers and employees to enhance their skills and competencies. Caronan, for his part, expressed gratitude to PAGCOR for believing in DAP’s capability to help implement organizational changes that would be beneficial to the state gaming firm’s workforce. “We would like to thank PAGCOR for their trust and confidence in this partnership; we are ready to provide the necessary technical services to make the agency GCG-compliant and help it carry out its reorganization efforts,” he said. The DAP is a government-owned and controlled corporation mandated to assist agencies and local government units in their development efforts by acting as a change catalyst and capacity builder. It helps facilitate the shaping of new government policies, crafting development programs, and modernizing the management structure of government agencies and private enterprises alike. The post PAGCOR taps Development Academy of the Philippines for reorganization push appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Tale of two cities
If Mayor Imelda “Emi” Calixto-Rubiano of Pasay City aspires to make her city the first “Eco-City” of the Philippines, Mayor Eric L. Olivarez of Parañaque City wants his city to be the first with the eGov Super App in the country. If Mayor Emi will have her iconic Manhattan in Pasay City, Mayor Eric has his equally iconic Fisherman’s Wharf in Parañaque City. Behind this backdrop of local initiatives, creative planning and responsible leadership are amazing changes in the economy and infrastructure of the two surging cities complementing wonderfully the overwhelming optimism of the national government to transform the Republic of the Philippines into the richest and most beautiful country in the world. Pasay aspires to be the very first eco-sustainable city or “eco-city” in the Philippines, as it continues to strive for excellence and growth while taking utmost consideration of its environment. “To serve its constituents and stakeholders with enthusiasm and efficiency, with a firm commitment to adhering to the principles of good governance, and providing services and infrastructure essential to making the city progressive, healthy and peaceful, worthy of respect and emulation” is the mission of Pasay City. The focus of its mission is ensuring that development ultimately benefits every individual in the City of Pasay, that the service is characterized by the willingness to serve, transparent and responsive to the needs of the constituents. The identified goals to be achieved included: 1) that Pasay City shall be recognized as the new international center for business, knowledge process outsourcing, meetings-incentives-conferences-exhibitions tourism and a model for governance; 2) a safe, secure, livable and inspiringly built environment; 3) efficient infrastructure; 4) carefully managed image of the city; 5) affordable housing to qualified beneficiaries. Why did Pasay City go into reclamation? Pasay City is one of the smallest cities in the National Capital Region. Much of its land is occupied and utilized by the national government. The rest is too limited for the population of the city. It has no choice but to expand its land area by reclamation. The City of Pasay was granted Environment Compliance Certificate, or ECC, No. ECC-CD-1601-003 dated 2017. The reclamation project covers 265 hectares involving two islands with areas of 210 hectares and 55 hectares, respectively. The important landmarks adjacent to the project site include the Cultural Center of the Philippines, the Coconut Palace, the Sofitel Philippine Plaza Hotel, the Philippine International Convention Center, the Government Service Insurance System, Mall of Asia, casinos Okada Manila and Solaire Resort, and Diosdado Macapagal Avenue. Reasons for the 265-hectare reclamation The increasing demand for readily developable land for urban expansion has pushed the real estate market in Metro Manila to its highest since the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Since the other urban centers of Mega Manila have no other way of expanding their existing inventory of land, the increasing requirements for areas to accommodate and satisfy the demand for rapid commercial and residential growth fall on the coastal LGUs. This, therefore, necessitates the creation of more land for economic activities through reclamation developments along the coastal areas of Manila Bay. The Pasay City reclamation project, near the SM Mall of Asia complex, can produce millions of square meters of additional buildable and developable space. This could translate to millions of square meters of building gross floor area, based on the existing buildable vis-a-vis to open space/public area ratio. The additional millions of open meters of building gross floor area can be allocated to tourism, office, residential, commercial and other non-industrial mixed uses. (To be continued) The post Tale of two cities appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Sell no casino
As a take-off point, let us quote Abraham Lincoln’s words on the legitimate object of government, viz., “It is to do for a community of people whatever they need to have done, but cannot do in their separate and individual capacities.” In the case of privatizing Pagcor down to some 45 casinos, it would appear that the “bargain of government spending” is framed along Adam Smith’s theory — “Give me this which I want and you shall have this which you want.” Privatization simply means removal of responsibilities, activities, or assets from the collective realm, but are there not “risks and rewards when we put public tasks into private hands?” All of a sudden — from out of the blue — this government plan to auction off Pagcor is quite disconcerting unless national survival has become a central concern. Rep. Rufus Rodriguez rightly questions, thus, “Why do we sell the goose that lays the golden egg?” Specially so since the agency’s forthcoming net gains are on the uptrend (i.e., P59 billion in 2022 and an estimated P75 billion by the end of this year). So far, the alibi of government is that by selling its casinos — lock, stock, and barrel — Pagcor’s role as “gaming regulator-cum-operator” becomes purely as regulator. In other words, there is that “revolving door problem” which should be avoided. Even granting that this could be a tenable argument for privatization — though never heard of — what would the backlash be? As far as the role of the Governance Commission for GOCCs is concerned, a public enterprise like Pagcor should only be privatized, if and only if, there’s a “government failure;” when it fails to generate revenues for the state; when it becomes reduced to a “non-performing asset;” when it shows “poor grades” in its Corporate Governance Scorecard. Thus, to privatize Pagcor absent these parameters should be interpreted as “implied contempt for government bureaucracy,” albeit misplaced. The sale of the casinos would fetch about P60 to P80 billion — practically within the same threshold of profit intake for any given year, give or take. In recent weeks, it’s as though the Senate’s over-fixated concerns with Pagcor were the POGOs (Philippine offshore gaming operators) alleged as fronts for human trafficking, kidnapping, other sorts of lawlessness. After privatizing the Pagcor casinos, will all these problems then go away? Bottom line, who in his right mind can say that Pagcor isn’t doing any better given that it contributes half of its revenues to the national coffers (i.e., in taxes) and mandated beneficiaries. It is said to be one of the government’s “staunch allies in nation building” and one of the biggest revenue generators. With the casinos out, who will shoulder the fiscal void created when “funded mandates” shift back to becoming unfunded? As a consequence of privatizing the casinos, there will be a number of national government agencies, local government units, non-government organizations, peoples’ organizations, a number of taxes, duties, licenses, fringe benefits — that taken together would no longer bring a “bundle of joy” to mandated beneficiaries who were allocated such subsidies over the years. The next thing that will ensue is the stark truth that Pagcor would cease to be a “responsible partner of the Filipino” — once privatization cuts the umbilical cord of subsidy dependence. In the next cycle, Pagcor would slide down from third place among GOCCS that remit the highest government contribution. As a rule, no GOCC belonging to so-called “billionaires club” should close shop without more justifiable grounds. In short, it should come last in privatization’s pecking order. There’s clearly no compelling reason to sell off the Pagcor casinos by public auction if the projected proceeds to be generated thereof are practically equivalent to the profit intake of any given year. Again, it escapes comprehension why only a handful of policy makers are against this self-inflicted move. The new pack of most-favored operators will quickly recoup their money without needing to gild the lily. What luck! The post Sell no casino appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
PAGCOR strengthens controls to make Phl a significant gaming destination
Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation chairman and CEO Alejandro H. Tengco discussed the agency's plans and programs to make the Philippines a leading gaming destination in the ASEAN region. Chairman Tengco was invited to deliver the keynote address on the third day of the G2E Asian IR Summit in Macau on 13 July 2023. In his speech, the PAGCOR chief expressed optimism that with the gaming regulatory reforms which the agency is undertaking, the Philippine gaming industry will be more responsive to the needs of the changing times while addressing the social ills that come with gaming operations. The Philippine gaming industry started to bounce back as it gradually transitioned into the new normal. Following its mandate to regulate and uphold the integrity of gaming operations in the Philippines, PAGCOR generated P58.96 billion in 2022, an impressive 66.16 percent year-on-year increase from its P35.48 billion total income in 2021. Net income last year reached P4.45 billion, a 2,000% leap from P203.57 million recorded in 2021. This achievement enabled the agency to fulfill its other role as the government's partner in generating revenues for socio-civic programs by increasing its contributions to nation-building from P22.91 billion in 2021 to P34.67 billion in 2022. Given PAGCOR's dual role as operator and regulator, its operations have been scrutinized by crucial decision-makers and major gaming industry players. Thus, since its assumption a year ago, the new PAGCOR Board of Directors has started strengthening the agency's regulatory function and has promoted the privatization of PAGCOR-run Casino Filipino facilities. Such a move will allow the corporation to grow and compete in both domestic and international markets by infusing new capital and advanced technologies, which can facilitate expansions, upgrades, and innovations. "By focusing on its regulatory functions, PAGCOR will be able to avoid the complexities of running two different shows. It can also streamline its processes and create more revenues to fund more high-impact government projects," Tengco said. However, before PAGCOR gaming venues are privatized, they will be upgraded to add value to the properties. Programs include the modernization of Information and Communication Technology and Cybersecurity infrastructure, including its Casino Management System and introduction of the Casino Filipino Online; upgrading of more than 3,000 electronic gaming machines (EGMs); and updating PAGCOR Technical Standards for EGMs. To combat the proliferation of illegal gambling in the country, PAGCOR coordinates with various law enforcement agencies. It has instituted reforms to address the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations, recently associated with crime, money laundering, and corruption. It has canceled the contract entered by the previous Board with the third-party auditor for offshore gaming operations, introduced new fees, and imposed heavy fines and penalties on licensees and service providers engaged in criminal activities. Furthermore, accreditations were suspended and canceled, and licensees were held responsible for the conduct of their service providers. Despite these, online gaming operations' gross revenue is projected to reach P24 billion by the end of this year, more than double last year's P11 billion. Tengco stated, "We shall undertake this painstaking process to weed out the unscrupulous companies and individuals using the PAGCOR license for illegal activities, tainting the name of the whole industry, especially the Philippines." PAGCOR has likewise accredited Gaming System Service Providers for Traditional Bingo, Electronic Bingo, Electronic (eCasino) Games, Sports Betting, and E-Billiards. Its licensed casinos were recently allowed to use remote gaming platforms for live casino games catering to their registered casino players. PAGCOR is studying the possibility of regulating other facets of overseas gaming operations or regulating a particular class of business process outsourcing. Through closed borders during the COVID-19 pandemic, PAGCOR has evolved and continues to adapt to the changing times by licensing new gaming options within its jurisdiction and adequately regulating them. "I know much still needs to be done, but I believe that we are on the right track towards making the Philippines a prime gaming destination in the ASEAN region," Tengco concluded. The post PAGCOR strengthens controls to make Phl a significant gaming destination appeared first on Daily Tribune......»»
Winds destroy houses in two Central Mindanao towns
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K-pop group Unis releases debut mini-album, Superwoman MV
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Philippine scientists harassed by China helicopter
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