Pogo elements in a posh village

Tomorrow, residents of the posh Ayala Alabang Village (AAV) in Muntinlupa City will hold a motorcade in their area to protest the presence of Pogos (Philippine offshore gaming operators) elements in their subdivision who have caused worry, suspicion, and disturbance in their lives. On their gates, many have hung tarps with the message: “NO POGO, BODYGUARDS, GAMBLING.” Some who live close to the suspected Pogo lairs could have been overcome with fear and did not hang the tarps.

Why have these undesirable aliens, Chinese nationals to be specific, made a gated, upper-class, residential community their place of choice? Your answers are as good as mine, security among them and the unlikelihood of being found operating in their hidden lair. No prying eyes, or so they think. What many other “safe, exclusive havens” like AAV have they penetrated? How could they afford enormous rental fees of not less than half a million pesos a month, one year paid in advance? And how are some of them, with the use of Filipino dummies, able to purchase and own property bought with astronomic sums? Where does the money come from? Who can refuse the offer? Who are they, what are they, why are they …

Alien infestation (from Xi Jinping’s China) of condominiums is another story. Condo residents have their own harrowing stories to tell. So do taxi drivers who ferry the abominable pests.

I have spoken lengthily with an AAV resident whose plaint can be summarized in a “manifesto against bodyguards and Pogos” from a group of homeowners to which he belongs. Excerpts:

“We are a group of Alabang residents who are outraged by the deteriorating peace and order situation in our once-peaceful and tranquil community. We believe we should no longer be silent and allow our families to be exposed to danger inside our sanctuary. And we should no longer allow the property values of Ayala Alabang to deteriorate because of our silence …

“Background: This sorry situation started to creep into our community some seven plus years ago when Pogos were allowed to operate in the country after being banned in China. (Note: They were welcomed by the China-enamored Duterte presidency.)

“Stage 1 saw houses being rented out to foreigners at exorbitant prices. Soon, we started to see armed bodyguards around some of these houses, along with high-end fancy cars. Some were converted into staff houses in blatant violation of AAVA’s One Family Policy.

“Stage 2 saw the construction of huge houses by bona fide local owners or by dummy corporations. Most of these houses have basements and are much taller than adjoining houses which you may call as ‘in-your-face’ violation of our Deed of Restrictions. With the influx of foreigners and their bodyguards who are associated with Pogos and other illegal activities, it was inevitable that criminal activities involving gambling, kidnapping and killings, hold-ups, and robbery were committed inside our once-peaceful community.

“Ongoing security measures: There are about 125 houses under surveillance by AAVA and Barangay Ayala Alabang. Plans are to add more CCTV cameras in as many strategic locations as possible.

“Here are recent examples of why we feel threatened in our very own community. 1) Brawl of bodyguards in Balayan [St.] last May 18. These bodyguards turned out to be active Special Action Force members from Zamboanga who were hired by a foreign resident of Ayala Alabang. (Note: Nine members of the military have been reported dismissed because of their involvement in this incident.)

“What is frightening is that the undesirables have found a way to bribe military officers in faraway Zamboanga to assign active soldiers as bodyguards in Ayala Alabang.”

The manifesto cites examples of foreigners involved in gambling and possession of unlicensed firearms, hold-up incidents, and even kidnapping of six foreigners, including a child, with four mutilated bodies found in Rizal and Quezon. Two houses had been operating as a “shabu” laboratory. Last year, National Bureau of Investigation operatives arrested 11 foreigners for possessing unlicensed firearms.

My source said that Muntinlupa Mayor Rozzano Rufino Biazon, like several city mayors in Metro Manila, had banned Pogos in his city. In the case of AAV, the Pogos may not be operating in the village (like they do big-scale in the raided Pogo hubs—I call them townships—in Pampanga and Tarlac). But the Chinese nationals renting the AAV residences could be Pogo personnel or operatives assigned covert tasks that may be political in nature. Rev up your rich imagination, you are not being paranoid. Young men are often seen going out in groups. My source observed that the food supply seems to arrive from somewhere, a commissary perhaps, not ordered online. Some women have been seen leaving in the wee hours of the morning and shuttled to the village gate.

If gated residential communities are no longer impervious to destructive alien intrusions, then the undesirables have really settled in to carry out their task to take over our landscape, to be spies in a country they covet. Pogos are the advance party from hell.

The enemy at the gates? No, in our midst.

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