Who facilitated her escape?
MALACANANG yesterday directed the Foreign Affairs and Justice Departments to cancel the Philippine passport of dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo to prevent her from continuing her flight from justice.
Immigration spokesperson Dana Krizia Sandoval yesterday said Guo is currently in Indonesia, arriving there a month after her escape from the Philippines, her final destination unknown.
In an interview with radio DZBB, Sandoval said Guo traveled to Malaysia from the Philippines on July 16, then arrived in Indonesia from Singapore on August 18.
Sandoval said that although Guo is a Chinese citizen, she has no valid Chinese passport, her last recorded Chinese passport having expired.
If her Philippine passport is canceled, Sandoval said Guo will find it impossible to travel or move from country to country.
“She could not travel without such a document. She will be automatically considered as an illegal alien in the country where she is since she will be an undocumented national and, as such, she could be deported to the Philippines,” Sandoval said.
This is where the August 20 memorandum by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin to DFA Secretary Enrique Manalo and DOJ Secretary Crispin Remulla will come in handy.
In the memorandum, the cancellation covers the passports of Alice Leal Guo (passport number P5469205B and set to expire on September 3, 2030); Wesley Leal Guo (P3953869C with expiration on April 25, 2035), Sheila Leal Guo (P0414405C with expiration on Jun 6, 2032), and Katherine Cassandra Li Ong (P7671640A with expiration on June 25, 2028).
Bersamin said under Republic Act No. 11983, or “New Philippine Passport Act,” the DFA secretary may cancel a passport in the interest of national security, or when the court issues an order for its cancellation as the holder is a fugitive from justice.
Malacanang’s order came after Senate deputy minority leader Risa Hontiveros, who reported the escape of Guo last Monday, asked the DFA to cancel the passport of Guo “to limit her travels.”
DOJ ORDER
Remulla has ordered an investigation on the escape of Guo despite the issuance of an immigration lookout bulletin order (ILBO) to monitor her movements, adding that every single individual who may have backed or participated in Guo’s exit from the country will be held accountable “to the full extent of the law.”
Last month, the BI assured the public that the names “Alice Guo and Guo Hua Ping” were both included in the ILBO.
Remulla issued the order to the National Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Immigration.
Remulla also ordered BI Commissioner Norman Tansingco to come up with a report immediately, warning that heads will roll in the BI if it is found out that they have been remiss in their duty or lent a hand in Guo’s escape.
The PNP, meanwhile, said it will coordinate with its foreign counterparts to bring Guo back to the Philippines.
Hontiveros said Guo’s passport should have been canceled by the DFA after the dismissed mayor’s true identity was established by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
“Cancelling her passport will limit her travels. Mas madali siya matunton kapag hindi siya gala nang gala (She can be easily located if she does not roam around). And besides, she does not have the right to use a Philippine passport in the first place,” Hontiveros said.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian said the Bureau of Immigration (BI) and the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) should be held liable for Guo’s escape.
Speaker Martin Romualdez has also asked Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo to immediately cancel Guo’s passport, according to Rep. Erwin Tulfo (PL, ACT-CIS).
“Thereby, kung saang country siya without a Philippine passport (whichever country she ends up without a Philippine passport), then she would be an illegal alien in the country.
Therefore, she can be brought back to the Philippines,” Tulfo told reporters.
Tulfo cited two grounds for the cancelation of a Philippine passport; if the holder gets convicted and if the passport was acquired through fraudulent means.
Zambales Rep. Jefferson Konghun said the government must find out how Guo was able to flee and who helped her in the Bureau of Immigration.
“That has to be investigated because she wouldn’t have been able to leave without paying government officials grease money, especially the Bureau of Immigration,” he told a press conference.
BI BACKTRACKING
Sandoval said the BI is backtracking Guo’s movements to determine the persons behind her escape, adding the bureau is not ruling out the possibility of some immigration officials helping the dismissed mayor.
“Nagba-backtrack tayo sa dinaanan ni Mayor Guo kung paano siya nakalabas ng bansa.
From there, malalaman natin kung sino ang mga individuals responsible in that area (We are backtracking the route that Mayor Guo used in leaving the country. From there, we will know who are the persons who may have facilitated her travel),” Sandoval said.
Sandoval said that based on the monitoring of their intelligence counterpart’s information, Guo crossed from Singapore to Indonesia last August 18 with her siblings Shiela and Wesley, and Ong.
“Nagkita sila sa Singapore (They met in Singapore) and now they are all traveling together in Indonesia),” she added.
Sandoval said Guo may have used the southern backdoor to leave the country aboard a ship or a chartered airplane.
She said if it is found out that Guo chartered an aircraft to leave the country, the owner of the plane would be criminally held liable.
She also said the BI got information that Guo had left the country last week but the details were “vague.”
“We learned of this last Thursday but the information was really vague. She had no listed departure. So we coordinated with the appropriate agencies,” she said.
In a press briefing at Camp Crame, PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said the PNP is assisting in the implementation of the Senate’s arrest warrant against Guo.
The Senate has ordered the arrest of Guo for failing to attend hearings on the criminal activities of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) in the country.
Last Monday night, Tansingco and Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission spokesperson Winston Casio confirmed that Guo has left the country, citing the intelligence and immigration records of their foreign counterparts.
“As civil servants, we have sworn to the country our unwavering integrity, transparency and accountability in all our actions and decisions. Hence, I am issuing this final warning against erring BI personnel who may have participation in the escape of Guo despite strict restrictions imposed by our government, it’s either you come out and unveil the truth or wait until I personally get to the bottom of this where heads will roll and all hell will break loose,” Remulla said.
Remulla said they would also look if Guo’s lawyers assisted her in fleeing the country.
“In addition, we will also delve into the possibility that the camp or legal counsels of the embattled ex-mayor may have had a hand in her slippery exit from the Philippines so let me reiterate that as much as lawyers have an obligation to protect the interests of their clients, they also have a broader responsibility to uphold the Rule of Law and safeguard public interest,” he added.
GUO IN PERSON?
The lawyer who notarized the counter-affidavit in the qualified human trafficking case of Guo yesterday said he saw the latter personally last August 14.
In an interview with radio DZRH, lawyer Elmer Galicia said Guo personally went to his office to get the documents notarized on the night of August 14.
Last Monday, Justice Assistant Secretary and spokesperson Jose Dominic Clavano said the notarized counter-affidavit was submitted to the panel of prosecutors handling the case last Friday.
“It was at around 7 in the evening of August 14, Wednesday. She was referred to me for notary by a certain Alan,” Galicia said, adding his law office is in San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.
To recall, a 2018 ruling issued by the Supreme Court stated that a “notary public should not notarize a document unless the persons who signed the same are the very same persons who executed and personally appeared before him to attest to the contents and truth of what are stated therein.”
Galicia appeared at the DOJ yesterday afternoon, accompanied by Bulacan Provincial Prosecutor Ramoncito Ocampo, the head of the Clark Freeport Zone Task Force Against Trafficking, and Caloocan City Prosecutor Darwin Cañete.
In the radio interview, Galicia said Guo and her companions were inside their vehicle throughout the entire process and only rolled down their window to talk to him, adding that he did not ask the embattled mayor to step out of her vehicle.
“Sabi ko mayor, sabi niya sa akin ‘Alice na lang po, pasensya na po kayo attorney at wala na po akong malapitan, wala na pong gustong tumulong sa akin (I said mayor, and she told me to call her Alice, and then she apologized, saying that she had no one to turn to),” Galicia said.
Galicia said he has a “soft spot” for people in need of assistance, so he notarized the documents presented by Guo. He said Guo presented her driver’s license.
“I can feel that this person really needs help and I cannot refuse; it is my duty as a lawyer to represent someone,” Galicia said, adding he did not ask Guo to pay the notarization services.
Gatchalian said they will invite Galicia to the Senate to shed light on the issue.
WHO HELPED HER ESCAPE?
Hontiveros, in a press conference at the Senate, said she would call for another hearing on the crimes associated with the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators industry to determine how Guo was able to depart and who facilitated her escape.
“We need to know how she was able to evade arrest since she is the subject of an arrest warrant. How was she able to flee the country even if she is listed in the Immigration Lookout Bulletin Order? How was she able to use a Philippine passport even if it was proven that she is not a Filipino… How did she manage to travel from one country to another? It may be possible that there are also immigration problems in other countries),” she said.
Hontiveros said the pronouncement of Atty. Elmer Galicia, the lawyer who notarized Guo’s counter affidavit, that the dismissed mayor is still in the country should be included in the next Senate hearing which has yet to be scheduled.
If Galicia’s statement is true, she said it only shows that Guo can travel in and out of the country as she wishes.
She said proper authorities have a lot of explaining to do.
“Kung nagsisinungaling ‘yung abogadong iyon, accountable din po siya. So, we will get to the bottom of both those questions (If that lawyer is lying, he should be held liable. So, we will get to the bottom of those questions,” Hontiveros said.
WAITING GAME
The long wait for the counter-affidavit of Guo on the material misrepresentation complaint filed against her by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) is set to end today Wednesday.
In an online interview with reporters, Comelec chief George Garcia said the poll body would no longer wait for Guo’s counter-affidavit beyond the period provided by their Law Department.
“At this point, we are still waiting for the answer of the respondent. After 10 days, we will see if there is a lawyer or she herself will come out and deny the accusation of misrepresentation,” said Garcia.
“The Comelec cannot just wait forever for the respondent. We cannot be delayed with our process because of the refusal to answer or appear by the respondent,” he added.
“This case has to be resolved immediately,” said Garcia.
Aside from resolving the case, Garcia said the Commission wants to send a message to all prospective candidates on the importance of making truthful declarations in their Certificates of Candidacy (COCs).
“We are giving attention to this case so that everybody will be informed that they cannot commit misrepresentation in their COCs,” said Garcia. — With Raymond Africa, Ashzel Hachero, Victor Reyes, Wendell Vigilia, and Gerard Naval
