Senate to hold last POGO hearing next week

The Senate will hold its final hearing on illegal Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) and unravel China's espionage activities and the role of dismissed Bamban mayor Alice Guo, according to Sen. Risa Hontiveros.

-  MARC JAYSON CAYABYAB

"We will tie up loose ends in our last hearing next Tuesday. This includes the big fish behind the POGO operations and its interlocking directorates," Hontiveros said during the Kapihan sa Senado forum yesterday.

There is a lot more to unpack about POGOs being a front for Chinese spies following the allegation of detained self-confessed agent She Zhijiang that he and Guo served for the Chinese Communist Party's spy network, Hontiveros said.

The last POGO investigation will be the 16th hearing since the Senate started its investigation last year on how the offshore gaming became hubs for trafficked victims to be forced to do scams and hacking activities.

The Senate had investigated the raided POGO hubs in Pasay, Clark, Porac and Bamban, Tarlac where Guo was revealed to be a key player in the illegal scamming operation.