STATE-RUN Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. said Thursday its board will decide today, Friday, what sanctions to impose on Resorts World Manila for the death of 38 people inside its premises on Friday last week.
The police said 37 of the victims died of suffocation when a lone gunman, Jessie Carlos, burned parts of the casino and then locked himself in a room, where he set himself on fire and then shot himself.
“On Friday, June 9, the Pagcor Board will deliberate and decide what sanctions will be imposed against RWM,” Pagcor said in a statement.
In other developments:
• The joint committees in the House of Representatives investigating the Resorts World incident are expected to draft a bill clipping the powers of Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. over casino franchises.
Parañaque Rep. Gus Tambunting, chairman of the House committee on games and amusements, said the House will come up with several legislation on the matter as soon as it wraps up its probe on the case.
• The Philippine Economic Zone Authority will enforce mandatory anti-terrorism training for all companies and locators inside the economic zones on top of fire and earthquake drills.
Peza director-general Charito Plaza said that decision was a legitimate means to protect the people during extraordinary times of violence that is happening all over the world.
Pagcor said the tragic event on June 2 showed the vulnerability of institutions in the face or any form of terror attack. Hence, the need to strengthen security and safety measures and protocols.
The regulator said that as a responsible corporate citizen, it was committed to implementing the highest security standards both for its licensed operators and its own gaming operations.
Pagcor said that before the June 2 incident, it issued a security advisory to all its licensees and gaming site operators to increase their security preparedness in their respective areas to ensure the safety of employees and guests.
“When the RWM incident took place, Pagcor immediately submitted a preliminary report to President Rodrigo R. Duterte,” Pagcor said.
“However, since police investigation was ongoing during the weekend, we could not access the crime scene and provide full account on the matter instantaneously.”
It further said that on June 5, it requested reports from the Philippine National Police, the Bureau of Fire Protection and Resorts World Manila.
“However, only RWM submitted a sketchy account of what transpired,” Pagcor said.
“Chairman and CEO Andrea Domingo firmly insisted that RWM must allow the Pagcor management to inspect the premises and view related videos, otherwise RWM risked losing its license.” With Maricel V. Cruz and Othel V. Campos
