Ombudsman dismisses Guo for grave misconduct

More than two months after she was suspended, Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo has been officially dismissed from office by the Ombudsman for grave misconduct.

In a 25-page decision made public on Tuesday, Ombudsman Samuel Martires ordered Guo’s dismissal, the forfeiture of all her retirement benefits, and her perpetual disqualification from public office.

The Ombudsman ruled that the “series of acts” committed by Guo in connection with the raided Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) hub in her town indicated a “willful intent on her part to violate the law or disregard established rules.”

Guo, a suspected Chinese asset, is allegedly the president of Baofu Land Development Inc., the owner of an approximately eight-hectare compound behind the Bamban Municipal Hall that allegedly hosts a POGO operation.

Guo has admitted owning at least 50 percent of Baufo’s stock but claimed that she divested her interest through a deed of assignment before she assumed office in 2022, which the Ombudsman said was nonexistent.

“Needless to stress, when respondent Guo started to discharge her duties and responsibilities as municipal mayor, she remained the real, true, and actual president of Baofu Land Development Inc. who stood to benefit from the continued operations of Hongsheng and Zun Yuan,” the Ombudsman said.

“This is a clear conflict of interest. The elements of corruption and a willful intent to violate the law are all quite evident. Guo must be held liable for the same,” the Ombudsman added.

Baofu hosted Zun Yuan Technology and Hongsheng Gaming Technology Inc., which were raided by the authorities earlier this year for alleged human trafficking, serious illegal detention and fraudulent cryptocurrency investment operations.

“From the very start, the actions of Guo were clear enough to demonstrate her design to further her business concerns in Bamban,” the Ombudsman said.

“Guo’s purchase of individual agricultural lots and consolidating and having them reclassified as residential and commercial lots, to the formation of Baofu, Hongsheng, and Zun Yuan, to throwing her hat in the mayoralty race all point to the fact that she carefully planned, orchestrated, and masterminded the POGO operations,” the Ombudsman added.

The case against Guo followed the administrative complaint filed by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) that alleged the mayor and two other local officials committed grave misconduct, serious dishonesty, and gross neglect of duty.

The DILG alleged that Guo did not cancel or revoke Zun Yuan’s business permit despite the cease-and-desist order issued by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) months before the raid.

Meanwhile, Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra said the quo warranto petition against Guo will still proceed since she “may still appeal the Ombudsman dismissal order.”

“The quo warranto petition, if successful, will make Guo Hua Ping (aka Alice Guo) ineligible to run for any elective public position in the future,” Guevarra said in a message to reporters.

Guo gets Comelec subpoena

On Tuesday, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) served a subpoena on Guo in connection with a complaint alleging misrepresentation on her certificate of candidacy (CoC).

Comelec officials initially went to Guo’s listed address — a farm in Bamban, Tarlac — to deliver the subpoena. However, they were only able to talk to a caretaker who accepted the document on Guo’s behalf.

According to Atty. Elmo Duque, assistant regional election director for Comelec Region III, the officials then went to Guo’s office in Bamban to ensure that the subpoena was properly served and to document the process.

The complaint centers around allegations that Guo provided false information about her citizenship and identity on her CoC. Despite declaring herself as a Filipino born in Tarlac on 16 July 1986, evidence from an alien fingerprint card revealed she is a Chinese national born in Fujian, China, on 31 August 1990.

The discrepancy raised serious concerns about the validity of her candidacy. In light of the findings, the Comelec Law Department recommended pursuing legal action against Guo for violating provisions of the Omnibus Election Code.

Guo has vehemently asserted that she is a Filipino notwithstanding the National Bureau of Investigation’s findings confirming that her fingerprints matched those of Chinese national Guo Hua Ping.