THE Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) said it plans to issue a notice to terminate its consultancy contract with the third-party auditor of its licensed offshore gaming operations, Global ComRCI.
“Since September 2022, the new PAGCOR management has been conducting extensive reviews of PAGCOR’s existing contracts, among which is Global ComRCI’s. Upon careful evaluation, PAGCOR has determined the third-party auditor to be in default of its obligations and (has) prima facie evidence (that it) committed unlawful acts,” PAGCOR said in a statement.
PAGCOR said that it endorsed the matter to the Office of the Solicitor General for the possible filing of administrative, civil and criminal cases against the auditor.
“PAGCOR will likewise explore all legal remedies available for the restitution of more than P800 million out of the partial amount released to Global ComRCI prior to the assumption of the current administration as well as damages it has caused to the corporation,” it said.
“PAGCOR would like to reiterate that contrary to previous reports, it has not yet paid the contract amount of P6 billion to Global ComRCI. Moreover, no payment has been made by PAGCOR in the past four years due to the shortfall from the minimum revenue stipulated in the contract,” it added.
It also added that it will give the auditor “the opportunity to be heard” in line with due process.
“In the absence of an external auditor, PAGCOR will temporarily undertake auditing functions for its offshore licensees until it is able to contract another third-party auditor through a transparent and strict bidding process,” it added. — Luisa Maria Jacinta C. Jocson