Deposed board retakes Okada Manila

DISPUTED CASINO The facade of Okada Manila, a casino resort and hotel complex, in Parañaque City —RICHARD A. REYES

The former management of Okada Manila is back in control of the luxury resort casino hotel after the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) ordered that the officials of the operator’s parent firm be given access to the physical premises.

In an employee advisory, Okada Manila operator Tiger Resort Leisure and Entertainment Inc. (TRLEI) said that Byron Yip has resumed his duties as the president and COO.

“In the meantime, business remains as usual at Okada Manila and all team members are advised to continue with their normal work and provide the same extraordinary service to our guests,” TRLEI board of directors said. The regulator also allowed TRLEI parent firm Tiger Resorts Asia Ltd.’s (TRAL) nominees and representatives, along with Kazuo Okada, to “access the Okada Manila premises and assume the operations and management of TRLEI.” It also gave the approval for TRAL and Okada to access the corporate records of TRLEI.

Status report

All the parties were directed by Pagcor to submit a status report within 72 hours from the receipt of the notice.

To recall, the power struggle in Okada Manila ensued after the Okada camp, led by businessmen Antonio “Tonyboy” Cojuangco and Dindo Espeleta, stormed the casino hotel in Pagcor Entertainment City during a stockholders’ meeting and physically removed TRLEI director Hajime Tokuda and other executives in May.

The Okada camp said it was acting on the status quo ante order issued by the Supreme Court in April, restoring Okada as a shareholder, director, chair and CEO of TRLEI.

TRAL has questioned it due to lack of basis but the SC upheld its order last month. Still, SC directed the Court of Appeals to gather more evidence of Okada’s ownership.

Pagcor, in consideration of a Department of Justice (DOJ) opinion released last week, has directed some members of the board to also cease from “further disbursing funds, and to vacate the gaming premises” of the casino hotel unless “they are able to present a valid authority.”

Pagcor’s order came after TRAL told it about payments made to a firm using Okada Manila’s cage money, according to a DOJ document. INQ