Ending Guo’s saga

The fight of Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo to preserve her questionable Filipino heritage and defend her liberty and business rages on.

As expected, the Office of the Ombudsman has taken a grave step, placing Guo and two other Bamban officials under preventive suspension. This significant move aims to facilitate a comprehensive investigation into their alleged involvement in the illicit activities of a Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hub in their municipality.

I’m sure this did not surprise Guo and company, who could only promise to cooperate with the investigation. The Department of the Interior and Local Government sought their suspension because the POGO complex in Bam-ban, which was raided last March and where authorities found evidence of human trafficking, serious illegal detention, physical abuse, and even torture, violates the Local Government Code and other laws.

The Ombudsman, having found substantial grounds, has suspended the three officials. The charges against the three Bamban officials are weighty, and their removal from office could be a possible outcome.

Upon further reflection, I find it challenging to trust Guo fully due to certain aspects of her character. These aspects raise questions about her innocence, especially in specific instances, if not all. But I also read that she absolutely crushed it in the last election, and her voters can’t get enough of her.

That is why certain Philippine officials and social media influencers have used public platforms to influence our opinion about her case, which is a typical scenario when a high-profile case is subjected to public scrutiny.

The Senate inquiry, conducted in aid of legislation, would like to broaden the questioning from Guo’s Filipi-no (or Chinese) ancestry to the POGO hub’s possible involvement in transnational crimes such as money laundering, human trafficking, and possible hacking activities.

This led to intense scrutiny, with Senator Riza Hontiveros emphasizing that the mayor was not being treated as a criminal. As the chair of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality, she stressed that the inquiry examined potential shortcomings in existing laws that permitted individuals with questionable backgrounds to hold public office. Hontiveros points to reports of Guo’s listed co-incorporators in her companies as prime suspects in Singapore’s most significant money laundering case.

On the other hand, the Office of the Solicitor General, or OSG, is investigating the controversial mayor’s background. This investigation is significant because it concerns quo warranto proceedings and other grounds like residency, literacy, or disqualifications based on the Election Code. A quo warranto case questions the validity and legality of someone holding a particular public position.

There is quite a mouthful of allegations, with civilians dissecting what is being said like lawyers and lawyers spreading rumors like civilians. However, the mayor has staunchly proclaimed her innocence and vowed to defend her truth vigorously so that justice can prevail.

The investigation into Guo’s emotional distress, which unwittingly exposed her life as an illegitimate child of a Chinese father and a Filipina housekeeper, has faced overwhelming criticism and controversy. It’s not fair for her entire family’s lives to be turned into a circus and exploited by conspiracy theories because of Sinopho-bia.

Some Filipino-Chinese individuals identify more with Filipino culture, are more law-abiding than some native Filipinos, and are also affected by the ongoing fiasco. There is no need to cause them mental distress.

Guo’s decision to accept her preventive suspension indicates the beginning of a structured inquiry process and her determination to clear her name and defend her reputation.

Mayor Guo should feel relieved that she finally has the opportunity to address all accusations against her, especially concerning her business transactions and her associations with individuals of dubious character.

The public has heard enough drama, and sentiments are rising due to the Guo event. We must now shift our attention to more pressing matters, such as the Mt. Kanla-on eruption, inflation, and the coming rainy season.

If Guo is to be charged, set the wheels of justice in motion without further delay, more innuendoes, and grandstanding. The court of law is the most suitable trier of facts.

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