Palace orders cancellation of passports of Guo, siblings
Dismissed Bamban mayor Alice Guo is now in Indonesia after fleeing the country on July 21 —most likely travelling via boat or private plane to Malaysia first before proceeding to Singapore and making her way to her present location in Southeast Asia, the Bureau of Immigration said.
BI deputy spokesperson Melvin Mabulac said Guo, who was implicated in illegal POGO operations in Tarlac, probably used her Philippine passport to enter Malaysia since ASEAN countries need not to secure a visa to legally visit or enter any Southeast Asian state.
Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin on Tuesday ordered the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Justice to cancel the passports of Guo, her siblings Wesley and Sheila, and Cassandra Ong, who reportedly has ties with Lucky South 99 POGO in Porac, Pampanga which was also raided by authorities.
“Given the foregoing and in the interest of justice, this Office hereby directs that appropriate action be taken for the cancellation of the Philippine passports of Guo, her family, and Ong,” Bersamin said in his memo addressed to Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo and Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla.
Mabulac, for his part, said it was unlikely that Guo, earlier identified as the same person as Chinese national Guo Hua Ping, would travel to China since POGOs are banned in the mainland.
However, Guo’s lawyer Stephen David maintained his client has not left the country.
“We just talked this morning and last night and she assured me that she is within the premises of the country. I have no reason not to believe her considering that in fact, last week, she appeared before a notary public and executed her sworn statement,” David said in an interview with TV Patrol.
In a separate interview, Elmer Galicia, the lawyer who notarized Guo’s counter-affidavit, stood firm that he met with the dismissed mayor personally on the night of Aug. 14.
“It was around 7 p.m. on Wednesday, August 14… She was referred by a colleague named ‘Allan,’ who brought her to me for notarization,” Galicia said in an interview with dzRH.
Galicia’s law firm is located in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan.
Remulla, for his part, vowed heads will roll as he ordered an investigation into the escape of Guo.
“Every single individual who backed or participated in the illegal
exit” of Guo will be held accountable, he said as he ordered BI commissioner Norman Tansingco to submit a report immediately.
“I am issuing this final warning against erring BI personnel who may have had a 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.
Guo reportedly met up with her siblings Sheila and Wesley as well as Ong in Singapore on July 22 before heading off to Indonesia.
Remulla said the DOJ is also looking at the possibility that the legal counsels of the embattled ex-mayor may have had a hand in her illegal exit.
“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 said.
Tansingco said an Immigration lookout bulletin (ILBO) was issued against Guo, her siblings and Ong on August 6, more than two weeks after they rendezvoused in Singapore.
Ong, in particular, left the country as early as June 11.
Senator Risa Hontiveros, who first disclosed to the public that Guo may have already fled the country, said canceling the dismissed mayor’s passport will limit her movement abroad.
“It would be much easier to locate her if she’s not moving around,” she said.
Hontiveros said the DFA should have cancelled Guo’s passport the moment it was confirmed that she was not a Filipino.
“And we will not allow (anyone) to go scot-free in case there were officials involved in the escape of Guo,” the senator added.
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian said Guo fleeing the country is just “a temporary setback” and the cases filed against the former Bamban mayor will still continue to move forward.
“Even the Senate will file our own case against her on perjury as well as disobedience. So, her world will shrink and the long arm of the law will eventually get her,” he said.
Once convicted, Gatchalian said Guo can be extradited back to the Philippines.
Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline “BI says Guo is now in Indonesia, escaped the Philippines via backdoor”
