Duterte pushes for Pagcor and PCSO merger

Thursday 25th of August 2016

Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte is pushing for the merger of state-owned gaming companies, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor) and lottery operator Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO), local media reports.

The move was confirmed by Pagcor chair Andrea Domingo during a budget briefing at the Philippines’ House of Representatives this week.

When asked about her stance on the merger, Domingo said, while she will not object to the policy of the national government, there would be difficulties in combining everything under one roof.

“We have been told (of the proposed Pagcor-PCSO merger), but it will be difficult to manage games for the ‘masa’ and games for the high-end. We will need good managers to run all of this. But if it will be government policy, I will not object to it,” said Domingo.

As well as consolidating its operations with PCSO, Domingo also said the Department of Finance was pushing for the privatization of 45 state casinos in the country.

However, Domingo said this was also a difficult job given each site had different leasing terms.

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