Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo owns 16 vehicles based on documents gathered by the office of Senator Risa Hontiveros, chairperson of the Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality.

During Wednesday’s hearing, Hontiveros presented some photos of the said vehicles and said these included sports utility vehicles, pick-up trucks, closed van and dump trucks.

But according to Guo, “Hindi ko na siya assets. Buy and sell din po kasi ang negosyo sa Westcars kaya may umiikot na sasakyan. Pero ang sasakyan na gamit ko ngayon GAC."

(They are no longer my assets. Westcars is a buy and sell business which is why there are cars that are circulated. But the one I use now is GAC.)

Guo said she is an incorporator of Westcars. The mayor said she also has a piggery, meat shop, farms, and embroidery business. 

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian believes Guo is not an ordinary citizen, saying an ordinary person "would not own a helicopter."

“Narinig ko sa interviews mo ordinary ka. Ang isang ordinaryong tao walang chopper. Ang SALN (Statement of Assets Liabilities and Net Worth) mo umaabot sa 300 million. That is not an ordinary person,” Gatchalian remarked.

(I heard in your interviews you are an ordinary person. An ordinary person does not have a chopper. Your SALN is almost at 300 million.)

Guo was also able to buy a chopper which she supposedly sold to a British company this year. In an exclusive interview with ABS-CBN, she said she planned on using it as an air taxi but that business idea did not take off. 

The 37-year-old Mayor told the Committee that she was able to venture into different businesses partly through the help of her father who gave her money. Guo’s father has a fabric and embroidery business in China.

“Minsan 500K, minsan 1 million, 2 million. Hindi naman po siya on a regular basis.”

(Sometimes P500,000, sometimes 1 million, 2 million. It wasn’t on a regular basis.)

A luxury vehicle being linked to the mayor belongs to a car dealer, Guo said. She said borrowed the vehicle for a Tarlac car show. 

CRIMINAL LINKS

Guo has come under scrutiny for her alleged links to the POGOs in Baofu Compound in Bamban.

For Gatchalian, on top of human trafficking, scams and other illegal activities, the POGOs in Baofu Compound in Bamban might have also been used for money laundering.

Guo used to own the land where the compound was built; she was a former incorporator of Baofu Corporation.

“Tingin ko malaki ang sindikatong nag-o-operate dito,” he said. “Hindi natin alam saan galing ang pera.”

(I think a big syndicate is involved here…We don’t know where the money came from.)

Upon consultation with an engineer, Gatchalian said construction cost for the various buildings in the compound was about P6.1 billion.

But Guo did not know where the money came from.

“Naisip ko wala naman mawawala sa’kin, ‘di ako maglalabas ng pera so ‘di ko inintindi,” she said.  

(I thought I will not lose anything. I won’t shell out money so I didn’t look into it.)

The compound was supposed to be for mixed use, according to Guo. There will be restaurants, a mall, and villas.

Huang Zhiyang, one of her fellow incorporators, was a regular customer of Guo in her meat shop business. She met him in Clark and asked him if he wanted to put up a business on her property which he agreed to. Eventually, Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) came in.

Huang, according to the Presidential Anti Organized Crime Division (PAOCC) is a fugitive, a fact Guo only found out during the May 7 Senate hearing. He was also the one who invited other incorporators, said Atty. Stephen David, Guo’s counsel.

Two other incorporators of Baofu are Chinese national Zhang Ruijin and Dominican Baoying Lin who are involved in what is considered the biggest money laundering case in Singapore.

Guo was criticized for not scrutinizing her former co-incorporators well. She divested before running for public office.

“Sobrang malaking pagkukulang sa due diligence,” Hontiveros said.

(A big shortfall in due diligence.)

Senators will have a closed door meeting with different government agencies such as the Anti Money Laundering Council (AMLC) to talk about sensitive issues surrounding POGOs in Bamban and those located elsewhere.

'FILE A CASE'

Meanwhile, Senate President Francis Escudero said those seeking Guo’s suspension might be better off filing a case against her than assailing her Filipino citizenship if she is really linked to illegal offshore gaming operators. 

"Kung iligal na POGO ‘yan at may kinalaman siya dapat din sampahan ng kaso at marahil yun ang mas malakas na kaso para suspendehin siya preventive suspension man lang kesa yung citizneship na dapat ihain ng solicitor general's office," Escudero told a media forum. 

Escudero noted that despite raids of supposed POGOs,  no cases have been filed and no one has been jailed. 

"Ang palagi ko lang tanong ah sa dami nang nari-raid bakit ba wala akong nakitang nahuhuli? Bakit wala akong nakikitang nakakasuhan at nakukulong? Kung may ginawang krimen talaga yang mga yan bakit deportation  lang ang solusyon bakit walang kaso asan yung criminal case?" Escudero added.

He also pointed out that for now, Guo's accusers have the burden of proof despite the reservations and red flags raised by her critics over her citizenship and qualifications for public office.

"Oo may rason para mag-alanganin tayo, pero yung presumption ay nananatili pa rin siya ay nakatakbo, siya ay registered voter, may passport siya na Pilipino siya. Nasa nagsasabing hindi na patunayan yun,” the Senate President said. 

“Ang pwedeng mag-question ng kaniyang citizenship at qualification bilang mayor sa pamamagitan ng quo warranto case ay ang solicitor general lamang. Walang kapangyarihan ang Comelec i-disqualify siya sa puntong ito. Kung isususpinde man siya ng DILG baka, sabihin nila tingin nila hindi siya citizen, dapat may basehan din yun," he continued.