Detained Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo reiterated Friday she wasn’t a Chinese spy, denying the statements made by She Zhijiang, who released a ‘dossier’ containing information about her alleged espionage work for the Chinese State Ministry of Security.
Guo was confronted with She’s testimony at the resumption of the House Quad Committee hearing on the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) during the interpellation of Davao Oriental Rep. Cheeno Almario.
Almario showed an excerpt of a documentary produced by Al Jazeera, which featured She, who is currently detained in Thailand on illegal gambling charges. She claimed he knew Guo by her Chinese name ‘Guo Huaping’ and that they were recruited by China to work as spies from the Philippines.
“Guo Huaping, China can’t be trusted. The two of us once dedicated our lives to China’s Ministry of State Security. Look at what happened to me. I don’t want to be eliminated. You should tell the world the truth,” She told Guo when asked by Al Jazeera if he had a message for her.
The self-confessed Chinese spy corroborated earlier statements in the previous Senate hearings identifying Guo as the daughter of Lin Wenyi and a natural-born Chinese citizen. He also said the Guos trace their roots from a neighborhood in Fujian, China.
She also claimed Guo reached out to him to help raise funds for her campaign as mayor of Bamban. Guo repeatedly denied this saying all her funding was bankrolled by her family’s businesses with some close friends donating resources ‘in kind.’
“I do not know him (She). I also wish to get the details because I want to file a case,” Guo told Almario, who asked to confirm if she has ties with She. Almario replied it is impossible to sue She at the moment because he is already in jail.
Guo repeatedly denied allegations she was a Chinese spy. She also reiterated her earlier statement that she knew Lin Wenyi as the partner of her father, Guo Jianzhong, a Chinese businessman who facilitated their relocation to the Philippines.
“I am not a spy. Totally, I am not a spy. I am not the person (being referred to) in the picture. I think our government agencies can prove one day that I am not a spy because I am really not one,” Guo told Quad Comm chairperson Surigao del Norte Rep. Ace Barbers.
“Secondly, the person in the video earlier, I’ll find a way—I just don’t know how—but I will talk to my lawyers, especially the network, I will file a complaint,” she added.
Al Jazeera released the 25-minute documentary titled “The Curious Case of She Zhijiang” on September 26, 2024 amid the ongoing congressional probe into the alleged ties of Guo to illegal POGOs and its connection to China.
