Department of Justice (DOJ) Undersecretary Raul Vasquez speaks at the House panel on appropriations’ hearing on the 2025 proposed budget of the DOJ on Thursday, September 5, 2024. (Screenshot from Youtube/House of Representatives)
MANILA, Philippines — Department of Justice (DOJ) Undersecretary Raul Vasquez said on Thursday that the immigration-to-immigration route is the best option to handle the arrival of dismissed Bamban Mayor Alice Guo from Indonesia.
Vasquez said this during the House panel on appropriations’ hearing on the DOJ’s 2025 proposed budget when asked where the ex-mayor would be brought once she arrives in the country after being arrested in Indonesia.
“Depende sa kung anong prosesong susundan. Kasi kung ang prosesong susundan gaya ng ginawa namin no’ng una (It depends on the process to be followed. If we follow the same process as we did before), which is the fastest, easiest, quietest, and least expensive, which is immigration-to-immigration route,” Vasquez said.
“Because they were arrested on an immigration violation, they were held in custody by Immigration Indonesian people. They were excluded or prevented from entry so, therefore, they have to be returned back,” Vasquez explained.
The Justice undersecretary also said there are three options for handling her return: to the country of origin, to the country that issued her passport, or to a country of her choice.
READ: Sheila Guo, Cassandra Ong brought to Bureau of Immigration from NAIA
“Since ‘yung dalawa doon ay sa atin (Since two of them are ours), naturally, we took advantage of that. That’s why it was our immigration people and the BI (Bureau of Immigration) people whom we sent [and] got custody of them,” he said.
“Law enforcement issue kasi, dinala muna pagdating dito. Dinala nila ngayon sa immigration for turnover because of the immigration violation and after the debriefing — that’s the time after two days — they were now turned over to you (Congress), one of them, and another one was turned over to Senate,” he added.
(It was a law enforcement issue, so they were first brought here upon arrival. They were then handed over to immigration due to the immigration violation. After the debriefing, which took place two days later, one was turned over to Congress and another to the Senate.)
Further, the undersecretary noted that is “the best viable option that would be done in a matter of hours” if the process would be applied to Guo’s arrival in the country.
Vasquez also shared that the matter is up to the Indonesian police, who currently hold custody of Guo, to turn her over to the BI and the National Bureau of Investigation who flew to Jakarta on Wednesday night.
INQToday: Alice Guo now under custody of PH authorities
Meanwhile, the Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. and Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief General Rommel Marbil arrived in Jakarta on Thursday morning to fetch Guo.
PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said they would transfer Guo to the Senate sergeant-at-arms upon her return to the country since the upper chamber issued an arrest order against her.
The DOJ and NBI confirmed on Wednesday that Guo was arrested in Tangerang City, Jakarta on Wednesday after reports surfaced that she had fled the country in July.
Shiela Guo, who was earlier identified as Alice’s sister, and business associate Cassandra Ong were both arrested in Indonesia last month.
READ: Alice Guo arrested in Indonesia – DOJ, NBI