Philippines-licensed online gambling operators continue to find themselves caught up in political squabbling over their right to operate.

Last week, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) announced that Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) would be allowed to resume partial operations provided they follow Enhanced Community Quarantine guidelines, including limiting operations to 30% of manpower.

In confirming the restart, Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said that since all POGO customers are based abroad, POGOs were akin to the nation’s significant business process outsourcing (BPO) sector, which includes call centers for major international businesses.

This view was later rejected by Rey Untal, president of the Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP), who told local media that, while POGOs and BPOs “share one extraneous similarity,” POGOs “cannot be considered” part of the BPO sector.