By Wilnard Bacelonia | Philippine News Agency
The Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality on Monday cited dismissed mayor Alice Guo in contempt for being evasive in answering questions from the panel.
Deputy Minority Leader and panel chair Sen. Risa Hontiveros made the motion after Guo insisted that she and Guo Hua Ping are not the same person.
The motion was seconded by Sen. Joel Villanueva.
“The National Bureau of Investigation has confirmed that she is Guo Hua Ping, a Chinese national who entered here in 2003. That means she blatantly lied before us in the Senate. That means she faced the people of Bamban and blatantly lied,” Hontiveros said.
She said previous hearings have established that Guo filed a late registration of live birth and was issued one, which she used to obtain a Philippine passport.
“The Philippine Statistics Authority had already declared the certificate as irregular,” Hontiveros said.
Senators also slammed Guo for not revealing the name of individuals whom she said are threatening her life.
In July, the committee also cited Guo in contempt and issued a warrant for her arrest for repeatedly skipping the hearing on illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs).
Police custody
Despite the contempt citation, Hontiveros said Guo will stay under the custody of the Philippine National Police unless she posts bail for her graft case.
Guo will be turned over to the Senate if she posts bail.
Meanwhile, a subpoena was issued by the panel to Sual, Pangasinan Mayor Dong Calugay, who notified the Senate that he will not be able to attend the public hearing because he has dengue.
Calugay’s name came out of the Senate discussions due to his alleged links with the Guo family.
On the other hand, suspected POGO incorporator Cassandra Li Ong did not attend the hearing because she was still confined in a hospital in Taguig City, according to the House of Committee on Dangerous Drugs, Public Order and Safety, Human Rights and Public Accounts in a letter to the Senate.
“Our latest update is that she may be discharged from confinement either tonight or Tuesday,” the letter said.
No departure record with BI
The Bureau of Immigration (BI) said no Philippine immigration stamps were found in Guo’s passport.
“We have reviewed the contents of her passport upon her arrival and found out that she has the same immigration stamps as her alleged sister Shiela. No Philippine stamps were found in both passports, showing that they left the country illegally without undergoing regular immigration inspection,” Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco said in a statement.
The former mayor’s passport, which was issued on Sept. 4, 2020, in Angeles City, is valid until 2030. It showed that she was born in Tarlac, Tarlac.
Tansingco said the photos of BI agents with Guo during her arrest were “misinterpreted”.
He said the agents were “just elated having completed the operation successfully.”
“There is no inappropriate conduct, and no disrespect was intended. We take our work seriously and remain committed to upholding the highest standards of professionalism,” he said.
Helped by foreigner
Guo, meanwhile, claimed that no Filipinos or authorities were involved in their escape.
She told senators that a female foreigner, who looks like an Asian, met them at a port in Metro Manila then accompanied them throughout the trip until they reached Malaysia.
“Yung port di ko alam yung exact pero sa Manila po. Hindi ko alam kung south or north basta Manila,” Guo said.
“Walang tumulong po ni isang Filipino or Filipina. Merong isang babae po, dayuhan. Hindi po ako sure sa nationality niya pero definitely hindi siya Filipino, Asian po siya,” she added, saying she never knew the name of the foreigner.
Guo said they boarded a white yacht with a wing sticker before boarding a ship hours later.
When asked how much she paid for the trip, Guo told senators that someone paid and facilitated it for them, but refused to name the person publicly “for her security.”
She was convinced later on by senators to write the name in a paper and submit it before the committee.
Guo said the person, whose name she wrote in the paper, is currently not in the country and the last time they talked was just by phone.
Senate Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada, however, was not convinced that no Filipino helped the Guo siblings escape the country.
“Ang galing naman nitong Chinese na ito na nag-arkila ng yate, dinala ka kung saan man yan, sa Malaysia, sa Indonesia. Itong tao lang na ito ang nag-facilitate sayo na walang tulong ng mga Pilipino?” Estrada asked in disbelief.
Guo said she received threats from both Filipino and Chinese nationals who she also refused to name before the committee hearing.
“Alam ko pong safe na safe po ako ngayon, kaso lang nagwo-worry po ako pagkatapos ng session, ng hearing, ano po ang mangyayari po sa akin,” she said.
The dismissed mayor requested to reveal the names and the threats through an executive session, but was declined by the committee. (with report from Ferdinand Patinio)
