BY RAYMOND AFRICA and VICTOR REYES
SENATE deputy minority leader Risa Hontiveros yesterday revealed that controversial Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo has ties with criminals who were her fellow incorporators at Baofu Land Development Inc., a company where she had a 50 percent stake.
Citing documents submitted by Baofu to the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2019, Hontiveros said the company’s incorporators included Guo, a Filipino; Rachel Joan Malonzo Carreon, also a Filipino; Zhiyang Huang, a Cypriot citizen; Zhang Ruijin, a Chinese; and Baoying Lin, a Dominican
Republic citizen.
Hontiveros said that based on their research, Zhang Ruijin was convicted last month of the reported “largest money laundering case in Singapore.”
She said that according to a report by Channel News Asia, Zhang Ruijin has “$41 million in assets overseas, including shareholdings in a Philippine real estate development company.”
She said Baoying Lin also faces charges in the same case.
Guo had earlier said that she divested her interests in Baofu before she ran in the 2022 elections.
Baofu Land Development leased its 7.9-hectare property to Philippine offshore gaming operator Zun Yuan Technology which was raided by authorities last month.
“Even if she had divested from Baofu before she ran in the elections, the fact remains she has ties with these criminals. Did she run as mayor to protect her friends? I am looking forward to our hearing on Wednesday. I hope the mayor did not lose her memory,” Hontiveros said, adding Guo has many red flags.
“Is this why she was able to afford her lavish lifestyle? Galing ba sa mga kriminal at pugante ang pambili niya ng chopper at mga luxury cars? (Did the money she used to buy a chopper and luxury cars come from criminals and fugitives?),” she added.
She also welcomed the move of the Department of the Interior and Local Government to strip Guo of her powers over the local police.
“The mayor should not have access to the police if she is a protector of criminals,” Hontiveros said.
The Senate Committee on Women chaired by Hontiveros is scheduled to conduct another hearing today, Wednesday, on the human trafficking and cyber scamming activities of the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators industry,
The Interior Department has also recommended to the Ombudsman the suspension of Gou due to “troubling findings on serious illegal acts which may have severe legal implications.”
NOT RESIGNING
Guo, in an interview with ABS-CBN News Channel, said she will not resign from her post amid questions on her nationality and allegations that she is a Chinese spy.
Guo said she was hurt by allegations that she is working as a spy for China, claiming she is a Filipino who loves her country.
“I am not going to resign. I will continue serving my constituents,” Guo said in mixed Filipino and English.
She said she intends to run again for mayor in the 2025 local elections, adding she is confident she would be supported anew by the people of Bamban.
Guo said she is not a politician but a public servant, adding she agreed to be interviewed by ANC on the prodding of her constituents.
“They are sending messages like ‘we love you mayor’, ‘don’t leave us’, ‘we still have many problems (to solve)’, ‘we still have many goals to achieve’,” said Guo.
Guo reiterated that she is not a Chinese spy.
“What I want to tell the public is I am not a spy. I am hurt by allegations that I am a spy. I am a Filipino, I love my country, I am not a spy,” said Guo.
“I am a Filipino, I love my own country, I am not a spy. I am not also an asset (of China). Of all the allegations, what hurts the most is to be called a spy. I am not a spy,” said Guo.
Guo admitted that she bought a helicopter in 2019 for an air taxi business but sold the chopper this year because the business was not lucrative.
In a statement posted on her Facebook page, Guo said she is a love child, the reason why she had not been clear about her identity during a Senate investigation that has sparked allegations she is a Chinese spy.
“For the sake of my countrymen who trust and love me, I bravely admit that I am a love child of (my) beloved father with our maid,” said Guo.
In the statement, Guo declared she is a Filipino, not a spy, and was not involved in the illegal operations of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO).
Guo apologized to senators, politicians and government officials for not giving clear answers during the Senate hearings on her personal background, including her parents and education.
Guo said she couldn’t think properly every time senators asked her about her identity, thus her answer “hindi ko po alam your honors (I do not know your honors).”
Guo said her biological mother left long ago, adding she was secretly raised at a hog-raising farm.
She reiterated that she was educated through home tutoring and had no papers or diplomas.
Guo also said she only learned of her mother’s name when her birth was officially registered when she was already a teenager.
She said it was “traumatic” for her to be asked during the Senate hearings about her identity, noting she did not want to answer those questions.
Gou said she did not directly answer questions about her identity out of her love and concern for her father.
“Sa kanyang edad na 70 ay ayaw ko na pong makaladkad siya sa aking pinagdaraanan (Since he is already 70 years old, I don’t want him to be dragged into the issues I am facing),” she said.
Gou said she hoped her real mother would come out soon to put a stop to claims that she is a spy.
She said she is a true Filipino in heart, mind and deed.
“Wala po akong kinalaman sa ilegal na operasyon ng POGO sa Baofu compound na sakot ng aming munisipyo. (I have no involvement in the illegal operations of POGO at Baofu compound that is under our municipality),” said Gou.
“At hindi rin po ako espiya ng alin mang bansa kagaya ng ibinibintang o kaya iniisip ng ilang politiko na misteryo sa aking pagkakakilanlan. (And I am not also a spy for any other country as alleged or suspected by some politicians who find my identity mysterious),” she added.
She said she authorized the operation of a POGO firm in the town because it presented a license to operate issued by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation.
Gou said the operation of the POGO hub in the town gave employment to her constituents, benefitting about 200 families.
