PAGCOR says there is no evidence that Japanese billionaire Kazuo Okada bribed former officials with the agency to obtain a casino license in the Philippines.
Jay Santiago, vice president for Legal Affairs for the country’s government-run gaming regulator, questioned the motivation of whistleblower Manuel Camacho, who alleged that Okada offered US$5 million to former PAGCOR Chairman Efraim Genuino to obtain his license to develop a casino in Manila’s new 100-hectare Entertainment City resort complex.
“All [Mr Camacho] could show to substantiate his allegations were pictures of vehicles downloaded from the Internet,” Santiago told a hearing of the Committee on Good Government of the Philippines House of Representatives. “But, nonetheless, if it could be proven there was indeed bribery we would have no qualms on revoking Mr. Okada’s provisional license.”
Okada’s Tiger Corp has committed to invest US$1 billion in its Entertainment City project, which was awarded a license by PAGCOR back in 2008.
Camacho, an attorney and former law partner of one of Mr Genuino’s sons, claimed the bribe was made in 2010. Santiago said Camacho leveled the charge in 2011 after a falling out with Mr Genuino’s son. Mr Genuino was no longer in charge at PAGCOR at that point. The subject of a wide-ranging probe into corruption, he left office in June 2010 after the election of President Benigno Aquino.
Camacho also is a former director of two Okada affiliates, Eagle 1 and 2, which own the land where Tiger plans to put up its casino. This is in apparent contravention of local ownership laws. But Santiago said, “All Eagle Corp has to do is to buy out Okada’s shares. Or they simply have to prove that Okada’s shares in Eagle are not more than the 40% limit.”
Another PAGCOR official, Francis Hernando, said that the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel has upheld the legitimacy of Mr Okada’s license.
Mr Okada, in the meantime, appears to have taken Mr Santiago’s advice, having his Japan-listed Universal Entertainment Corp sign a deal giving Philippines property firm Robinsons Land Corp a majority stake in Eagle Land Holdings, which owns the actual casino site. Universal said Robinsons Land will take on commercial and residential development, including a budget hotel, at the Manila Bay complex.
Universal did not disclose the value of the deal, which will be concluded on 31st January.
Robinsons Land, with a market value of US$2 billion, is the property development arm of Philippines conglomerate JG Summit Holdings.
