Senator Risa Hontiveros (left) and suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo. PHOTO FROM SENATE PRIB/FACEBOOK
MANILA, Philippines — Prior deportation, embattled former Bamban Mayor Alice Guo needs to serve a sentence in the Philippines if she ever gets convicted, Senator Risa Hontiveros said on Friday.
During a virtual conference, Hontiveros echoed the words of Interagency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) Undersecretary Nicholas Ty regarding Guo’s possible fate.
“Yun yung sinigurado ko sa Department of Justice, in particular kay Usec. Ty, na head ng Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking, na kahit magkaroon ng penalty of deportation sa kanya, kapag na-convict siya on any of those cases, she will first have to serve her sentence here in the Philippines,” said Hontiveros.
(That’s what I assured the DOJ, in particular Usec. Ty, head of IACAT that even if there is a penalty of deportation against her, if she is convicted on any of those cases, she will first have to serve her sentence here in the Philippines.)
“So, kumbaga, hindi lang free pass na made-deport at doon na lang niya harapin yung consequences sa kung saang bansa siya idedeport, but she will have to face the consequences kapag mapatunayan ng mga korte natin na nilabag niya, ang mga batas ng ating Republika,” she emphasized.
(So, it is not just a free pass to be deported and she will have to face the consequences to which country she will be deported, but she will have to face the consequences when our courts prove that she violated the laws of our Republic.)
The PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG) and the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission earlier filed a non-bailable qualified human trafficking charge against the suspended mayor over her alleged ties with Zun Yuan Technology Inc. — an illegal Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) hub in her town.
The suspended mayor has been subjected to scrutiny, not only because of her alleged Pogo ties, but also due to her questionable identity.
Senators accused Guo of being a Chinese woman assuming the identity of a Filipino woman named Alice Leal Guo.
The National Bureau of Investigation strengthened this allegation, confirming on Thursday that the mayor’s fingerprints matched those of a Chinese passport holder Guo Hua Ping who entered the Philippines as a 13-year-old on Jan. 12, 2003 using a special investor resident visa.
According to Hontiveros, this revelation does not only prove that Guo is a fake Filipino, it also serves as evidence to remove her from public office.
