Mon | 7.15.2019 | 4:00 PM

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) once again made history when it remitted the highest cash dividends to the government during the 2019 Government-Owned and Controlled Corporations (GOCC) Day on July 11, 2019.

PAGCOR turned over a total of P16.17 billion cash dividends – making the state-run gaming agency a consistent top dividends contributor to government coffers.

The amount, which was PAGCOR’s highest one-time cash dividends remittance, almost matched the state-run gaming agency’s P17.16 billion cumulative cash dividends from 2011 to 2017.

PAGCOR Chairman and CEO Andrea Domingo explained that every year, the agency remits cash dividends to national coffers, pursuant to Republic Act 7656, which requires government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) to remit at least 50% of their annual net earnings as cash, stock or property dividends to the National Government.

“Since 2011, PAGCOR has been remitting cash dividends to the government. But it was in 2018 when we posted the highest amount. Because of this, PAGCOR’s total remitted cash dividends from 2011 to the present has reached P33.33 billion, enabling the agency to consistently make it to the GOCC Elite Circle or the Billionaires’ Club. These are the corporations that remit at least ₱1 billion cash dividends to the government,” she said.

The Department of Finance (DOF) reported that  this year, the cash dividends collected from a total of 53 GOCCs reached a record-high of P61.3 billion – surpassing last year’s P51.24 billion milestone.  PAGCOR’s dividend contribution was the highest among the GOCCs.

The 2019 dividend collections, according to Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III will “help provide funds for the pensions of the country’s uniformed personnel and augment funding for the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF), which was created under the new Rice Tariffication Law.”

Go back