Galaxy Entertainment to Build On Boracay As Planned

Casino industry in the Philippines is going through a rough period, ever since its president, Rodrigo Duterte, launched an anti-gambling campaign, holding back establishments such as Galaxy Entertainment to proceed investments on the island of Boracay. However, the Chinese gaming giant is quite optimistic about its plans for an entirely new $500 million casino resort, whose construction is underway.

The group’s chairman, Lui Che Woo, recently revealed more details about the resort, by adding that Galaxy is working on acquiring one of three integrated casino resort licenses in Japan.

Environmental Clean-Up

Despite Rodrigo Duterte’s noisy statements about shutting down the entire casino industry in the country, Galaxy Entertainment Group has succeeded in obtaining a provisional license to begin development in collaboration with local Leisure & Resorts World Corp. The country’s gambling regulator, PAGCOR, defined 23 hectares of land on Boracay in cooperation with the government, days before the Philippine president closed the island for six months, claiming that the crystalline blue waters are being polluted with human waste at an alarming rate.

Duterte ordered an immediate clean-up and added that no new casinos will be built in the country, despite the issuing of the provisional license.

Grand Opening Scheduled For 2021

Although the anti-casino rhetoric from the head of state is heating up every year, both contractors are convinced that the project is on a good trajectory and will open in 2021. More importantly, the preliminary assessment is completed before the island’s closure, and DENR’s further investigations will provide additional prior to the construction.

In the meantime, the president’s spokesman, Harry Roque, has issued an official statement from the cabinet, saying that Rodrigo Duterte will never allow a casino on Boracay. Roque added that operators shouldn’t test “the political will of the President” and pointed out that the current license is only for provisional purposes. More details coming…