Officials and security personnel of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) accessed the Philippine Village Hotel (PVH) on November 21, 2023 and served a notice for occupants to vacate the building, acting on an order from Pasay City Metropolitan Court Branch 451. They were accompanied by guards led by Pasay City Sheriff Randy Leviste1. The hotel, which sits on land inside the former Nayong Pilipino complex near Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA), had been closed and permanently ceased operations in 20011.
The property has a casino history. The PVH was the site of the Philippines' first land-based casino1. A casino called the Manila Bay Casino had operated out of the luxury liner MS Philippine Tourist, which opened in 1977, but after the ship burned down in 1979, PAGCOR transferred casino operations to the Philippine Village Hotel1.
The hotel was built by Philippine Village Hotel Inc (PVHI), previously called Sulo ng Nayon Inc., through a P22 million loan from the Government Service Insurance System1. It was designed by National Artist for Architecture Juan Nakpil and built on land measuring 36,289 square meters1. While the hotel opened in 1974, the lease from the Nayong Pilipino Foundation to PVHI was not signed until June 1, 1975, for an initial 21 years, renewable for 25 years1. GSIS lent PVHI additional loans of P8 million and P6.5 million in April 1974 and June 19751. Between December 1972 and June 1986, PVHI paid GSIS a total of P98.92 million, which records indicate was not enough to cover its total liabilities1. It still owed the Nayong Pilipino Foundation around P100 million in unpaid lease obligations1.
MIAA officer-in-charge Bryan Co said agency staff immediately conducted security checks on the property, something he said the MIAA had been unable to do for over 20 years1.
"On November 21 this year, by virtue of an order from Pasay City Metropolitan Court Branch 45, officials and security personnel of the MIAA, accompanied by guards led by Pasay City Sheriff Randy Leviste, were finally able to access the property and serve a notice for the occupants to vacate the building."
The land is owned by MIAA, but the building had been under private ownership for decades1. In January 2009, Jose Marcel Panlilio said he and his family had sold nearly 100 percent of their interest in PVHI to Burgundy Asset Development Corp. (BADC), whose chairman is named Rogelio Serafica1. Executive Order No. 111 ordered the transfer initially of 8.6 hectares of land occupied by Nayong Pilipino to MIAA, and in 2012 Executive Order No. 58 directed the Nayong Pilipino Foundation to transfer the remaining 22.3 hectares, including the PVH site1. The order could not be served earlier because of pending legal issues involving PVHI, which still technically owned the building1.
What it means for players
The PVH has not operated as a hotel or casino since 2001, so the notice to vacate does not change where gambling is currently available in the Philippines1. Gambling in the country began on the water, aboard the Manila Bay Casino, which operated from the luxury liner MS Philippine Tourist docked off Manila Bay after opening in 19771. When that ship burned down in 1979, PAGCOR relocated its casino operations to the PVH1. Anyone looking at where casino gambling is permitted in the country today will find nothing in this development that alters the current licensing or venue picture; the sources do not report any effect on operating casinos. For background on entry rules and what is available, see Can I Gamble in the Philippines? and Casinos and Integrated Resorts in Asia: Who Can Enter, What You Can Play and the Rules Inside.
What happens next
According to MIAA officials, the hotel is too run-down to benefit from refurbishment and will be demolished to make way for the expansion of the adjacent NAIA Terminal 21. The plan is to use the property in the NAIA modernization program meant to improve and expand the country's main aviation gateway1. No demolition date has been reported.
