Newly-minted Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) chairman Al Tengco is putting his foot down on the months-long boardroom battle in Okada Manila even if it meant going against his former boss, Tonyboy Cojuangco.
Tengco has issued a “cease and desist” order on September 2 against Japanese billionaire Kazuo Okada for usurping the board of Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment, Inc. (TRLEI), operator of Okada Manila, on May 31 from Tiger Resort Asia Limited (TRAL) led by his estranged son, Tomohiro Okada (who eased out his father from Universal Entertainment, Okada Manila’s ultimate parent).
This is a turnaround from Pagcor’s previous stand under then chairman Andrea Domingo who sanctioned the installation of Kazuo as TRLEI chairman and his cohorts as members, including Cojuangco (president) and Dindo Espeleta (vice chairman, treasurer and Kazuo’s representative). Tengco was Cojuangco’s special assistant when the latter was still chairman of PLDT.
Pagcor orders Kazuo’s camp to vacate Okada Manila
Tengco was acting on a Department of Justice opinion issued on September 2 which confirmed Pagcor’s power and authority to act on he appeal of TRAL, which owns 99.9 percent of TRLEI, to retake control of the casino-hotel’s board and protect its $2 billion investments from bankruptcy.
The DOJ said as a licensee, TRLEI falls under the jurisdiction of Pagcor just like all corporations are under the regulation of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
DOJ said the nomination and election of TRLEI directors has to be approved by Pagcor in writing and any violation could be among the grounds for the revocation or suspension of license.
DOJ said Pagcor has the power to issue a CDO to prevent imminent fraud or injury to the public.
In its CDO, Pagcor ordered the Kazuo board to stop the further disbursement of funds from the Okada Manila cage and to vacate the gaming premises of the casino and its offices “unless they are able to present a valid authority” in accordance with Status Quo Ante Order (SQAO) issued by the Supreme Court last April 27.
“Pagcor would be remiss in its duties as casino regulator it would do nothing to address the alarming reports submitted by TRAL on the grand issues or theft of casino funds thereby placing the casino on the verge of disastrous bankruptcy. This will have a serious impact on the gaming industry to the detriment of the public,” said DOJ.
The DOJ opined that the SQAO, which was used by Kazuo as a basis to replace the old TRLEI board members with his lapdogs, merely required the return of Kazuo as a stockholder, director, chairman and CEO (the posts he held before he was kicked out in 2017 for corruption issues).
The DOJ said the SQAO issued by the Supreme Court last April did not empower Kazuo to form a new TRLEI board and make himself the sole representative of TRAL representative.
The DOJ ruled that that Kazuo group’s actions exceeded and violated the explicit wording of the SQAO, noting that members of the usurping board do not have TRLEI shares and are not qualified to sit as directors.
The DOJ pointed out that the SC itself refused to act on Okada’s petition to restore him as the sole representative of TRAL in TRLEI.
TRAL sent a group of men wearing white polos and red hats on Friday, September 2, to Okada Manila to implement Pagcor’s CDO but Kazuo’s bodyguards have so far stopped their siege. Kazuo’s group claimed that they were not allowed by the DOJ to give their side before giving its opinion.
