Last Monday, a group affiliated with Kazuo Okada entered Okada Manila and ejected executives who were running the property and put official affiliated with the former chairman in charge. The move comes two weeks after a Philippine court instructed Tiger Resort, Leisure and Entertainment Inc (TRLEI) to reinstate Okada as chairman and rejected the charges that he committed fraud. He was found guilty by a Japanese court, but a Philippine court cleared him of the charge. A Philippine court in January has rejected embezzlement charges against Okada and rescinded arrest warrants for two associates. The Japanese verdict remains in effect and Okada’s ouster from the parent company, Universal Entertainment, remains in effect.
On Tuesday, a release under the TRLEI logo accused Kazuo Okada of an “illegal violent” takeover, consisting of 50 security officers along with police officers of Paranaque City Police and a sheriff of the Regional Trial Court of Paranaque City. The group ousted the executives in the building with “brute force,” according to the release. TRLEI said the group claimed to have a court order but refused to produce it. Representatives of the Philippines Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), disputed that contention, however.
“The sheriff served the Supreme Court status quo ante order to Mr. Tokuda (the Japanese citizen in charge of the resort). Attorney (Florencio) Herrera informed Mr. Tokuda that based on the status quo ante order, Mr. Kazuo Okada was restored as chairman and CEO of TRLEI. He then formally introduced the group of Mr. Kazuo Okada (who was present at that time through Zoom conference). The videoconference ended at around 12.10pm.”
Former board members Tonyboy Cojuangco, Dindo Espeleta, and Herrera have assumed executive functions at the resort.
While TRLEI alleged that executives were injured in the takeover, representatives of the country’s gaming regulator, PAGCOR said that wasn’t the case, particularly in the case of Hajime Tokuda, a Japanese national and executive at Okada Manila .
“The PAGCOR monitoring team on duty at that time reported that Mr. Tokuda was then escorted outside the premises without being bodily hurt,” the agency said. “The whole incident was covered by closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras.”
Tiger Resorts Asia Limited (TRAL), which owns TRLEI, says it will challenge the takeover in the Philippine Supreme Court by pointing to the previous court decisions. Both are wholly owned enterprises under Universal Entertainment, which also owns gaming equipment manufacturer Aruze Gaming. TRAL issued a statement clarifying why it believes the takeover is illegal.
“TRAL, which is a Hong Kong company, is not under the jurisdiction of Philippine courts nor subject to the SQAO (Status Quo Ante Order). Further, TRLEI is indirectly wholly owned by Universal Entertainment Corporation (UEC), a Japanese publicly listed company,” the release read. “The Tokyo District Court, Tokyo High Court and Japanese Supreme Court have already effectively decided with finality that Mr. Okada’s removal was valid. UEC, TRAL and TRLEI are confident that the Philippine Supreme Court will eventually see the correctness of TRLEI’s position, rule in TRLEI’s favor, and recognize the Japanese courts’ decisions on the dispute between Japanese citizens over the control of the Japanese parent of TRLEI and its subsidiaries.”
“Prior to his removal, Mr. Kazuo Okada only held one share of stock in the corporation,” the statement went on. “He therefore did not have the authority to take control of the corporation in such unceremonious fashion. There is nothing in the SQAO, which remotely authorizes Mr Kazuo Okada to take over the premises of the corporation, much less with the use of force. By using the SQAO to execute their illegal takeover, they have abused court processes, thereby making a mockery of the administration of justice. The SQAO is a temporary or provisional order, while the assigned division of the Supreme Court is still studying the case and has yet to decide on the merits of the case.”
The Okada group, meanwhile, says he takeover was legal and actually backed by PAGCOR.
“On May 2, 2022, Mr. Kazuo Okada was reinstalled the board of directors and officers of TRLEI, which was recognized by PAGCOR as the legitimate board and officers of TRLEI and consistent with the status quo ante order.”
PAGCOR, while not defending Okada’s takeover, tried to distance itself from the dispute. On Tuesday, the regulators said they had dispatched a team to oversee the operations of Okada Manila, and said that was their primary concern, that operations of the property not be compromised. The team, according to PAGCOR, “monitored the situation with the purpose of protecting the interests of PAGCOR and the government, and to ensure that operations are not disrupted and the welfare of the playing patrons is ensured.”
The government gets gaming taxes and PAGCOR gets certain fees from all Philippine operations.
On Thursday, PAGOR issued a release that said, “Considering that the matter at hand involves an intra-corporate dispute pending before the Supreme Court, PAGCOR, as a government regulatory body, is duty bound to observe due process and comply with the issuances and directives of the Supreme Court.”
At the same time, the regulator seemed to have agreed the takeover could be legal.
“PAGCOR understands that the incident that occurred on May 31, 2022, in Okada Manila is a consequence of the implementation of the status quo ante order issued by the Supreme Court,” it said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Universal Entertainment says it plans to file criminal charges against Okada, including “trespassing, obstruction of business, unlawful occupation, theft, assault, injury and incitement by several persons under the direction of Mr Kazuo Okada, a former director of the company,” said the statement.
Universal said there was no legal justification for the takeover.
“There are no administrative or judicial permits, orders, etc. to justify their actions, and these are serious criminal offences committed illegally and violently.”
