Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. | 蜜桃工作室 FILE PHOTO/Ryan Leagogo
MANILA, Philippines 鈥� Local authorities should have raised concerns about the proximity of Bamban town鈥檚 Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) hub to a key military base, Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said on Monday.
Teodoro noted that the Pogo hub linked to dismissed mayor Alice Guo is very close to Camp O鈥橠onnell base in Capas, Tarlac, home of the Philippine Army鈥檚 Training and Doctrine Command (Tradoc).
鈥淚t is curious that a 32-building complex [was] operating within two minutes flying time away from the Tradoc and the light armor division [headquarters],鈥� Teodoro said in an ambush interview in Camp Aguinaldo.
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鈥淎ll of the authorities should have been aware at the time, particularly the local authorities,鈥� he continued.
Camp O鈥橠onnell base is a frequent venue of the annual war games between Manila and Washington.
At one point, the 250-hectare base also housed the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System or Himars, an advanced long-range missile system of the United States which could strike up to 3,000 kilometers away.
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Camp O鈥橠onnell is only about 14 kilometers away from the now-shuttered 10-hectare Pogo hub in Bamban.
Guo (real name: Guo Hua Ping) is being investigated by the Senate and the House of Representatives over her alleged involvement in Pogos, now an illegal enterprise.
She Zhijiang, a 鈥淐hinese spy鈥� imprisoned in Thailand, also linked Guo to Chinese espionage operations in the Philippines, according to an Al Jazeera report鈥攁n allegation she vehemently denied.