Who Is Alice Guo, the Bamban Mayor Allegedly Linked to POGOs
We lay down what we've gathered so far.
(SPOT.ph) Alice Guo—you know her name, but not her story.
The 37-year-old Mayor of Bamban, Tarlac is caught in a high-stakes investigation by the Philippine Senate about her citizenship, alongside serious accusations of illegal activities linked to her office. Alarm bells are ringing over the possibility that that she could be the first "Chinese mayor" in the Philippines, if Senator Risa Hontiveros is correct in her suspicions.
“Kahapon sa ating hearing, halos malunod tayo sa rami ng rebelasyon na nanganak pa ng mas maraming tanong. Una na diyan: Totoo kaya na Chinese talaga si Mayor Alice Guo?” Hontiveros said in a press conference last week.
Who is Alice Guo, the Bamban mayor suspected to be Chinese?
On May 7, Hontiveros questioned Guo’s nationality in a Senate committee hearing, suggesting that the mayor might not be a Filipino citizen since she seemed to have come out of nowhere before 2022. This concern stems from discrepancies in Guo's official documentation—from birth to education—and it doesn’t help that she can't seem to remember anything from her past.
To explain her lack of educational records, Guo claimed she was homeschooled from elementary to high school, but was not able to name her homeschool provider beyond her tutor’s name of “Teacher Rubilyn.” In addition, her record of birth was only filed with the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) when she was 17 years old. The certificate claims Filipino paternity, even though her father’s business records allegedly lists him as a Chinese national.
When questioned about her absence of hospital records, Guo claimed she was born at home inside a farm but cannot recall the specific place of her birth: “Hindi ko na po alam.”
Guo would only emerge in the political spotlight during the 2022 elections as an independent candidate. She managed to best four other candidates who were backed by well-established political parties, becoming the first female mayor of Bamban.
“Mga kababayan natin sa Bamban, magkakakilala sila halos lahat. As in, walang nagkakakilala kay Mayor Guo noong una siya lumitaw, tumakbo, at nanalo bilang mayor. Sabi ng ibang kausap naming, zero ang nakakakilala sakaniya noong panahong ‘yun,” Hontiveros said in a press conference.
Complicating matters are accusations linking Guo to operations involving Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), specifically Hongsheng Gaming Technology Inc. and Zun Yuan Technology Inc., that were raided on March 13 over charges of human trafficking and serious illegal detention. Documents from these raids allegedly connect Guo to these operations, with evidence such as a municipal resolution from when she was a private citizen endorsing Hongsheng’s license, as well as vehicle registrations and electric bills under her name from the POGO sites. Senator Win Gatchalian called them “damning pieces of evidence.”
Guo was quick to deny these connections during the Senate panel hearing earlier this month: “Unang una po, hindi po ako konektado, hindi po ako operator, hindi po ako protector ng POGO. Wala po akong kinalaman sa kanilang operation at sa kahit anong gawain sa loob at sa labas ng POGO.”
She acknowledged her past involvement as the former incorporator of Baofu Corporation, which owns the compound housing the POGO. However, Guo stated that she had divested her interests in Baofu before entering politics, emphasizing that her previous roles did not connect her to the operational aspects of the POGO activities currently under investigation.
“Kaduda-duda! No school records from grade school to college. No hospital records dahil pinanganak sa bahay. ‘Di masagot kung ang mga ka pareho niya ng address ay kamaganak niya or hindi. Tapos may dokumentong naglilink sa kanya sa isang POGO na may di umanong surveillance and hacking activities? Ano to!?” Hontiveros wrote in a Facebook post.
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What’s the big deal with Alice Guo’s citizenship?
There are basic requirements to run for office in the Philippines. The Local Government Code states the following requirements for aspiring candidates in local posts, from provincial governor to city/municipal councilor:
- a citizen of the Philippines
- a registered voter in the municipality, city, province, or district where he/she intends to be elected
- able to read and write Filipino or any other local language or dialect
These requirements ensure that those in government positions are loyal to the country and its interests. If Guo is found to be a non-Filipino citizen, her election to office could be declared invalid under the Philippine Constitution.
Hontiveros voiced concerns about a pattern observed in other nations where foreign agents infiltrate another country under fake identities, raising suspicions that similar tactics could be taking place in the Philippines.
“Base sa research namin, sa ibang mga bansa, may ganiyan ding modus sa mga ipinapasok ng mga dayuhan. Eventually, doon magpapanggap na local, na national, doon sa bansang iyon, then may gagawin na…hindi kanais-nais. Kaya importante ‘yung pending na tanong kay Mayor Guo,” Hontiveros said.
For now, the senators have requested that Guo submit her Statements of Assets, Liabilities, and Net Worth (SALN), along with her Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE), for review in the upcoming Senate hearing. They also plan to invite residents and council members from Bamban to gain further insights into the mayor's activities.
“We’re giving her the benefit of the doubt, so we asked her for the documents to know who she really is,” Gatchalian was quoted as saying in an interview with One News.
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