Alice Guo House quad comm hearing attendance gets greenlight

SILENT TREATMENT: Former Bamban Mayor Alice Leal Guo, otherwise known as Guo Hua Ping, invokes her right to remain silent during a public hearing conducted by the Committee of Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality on the alleged illegal activities of of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) hubs in Pampanga and Tarlac Tuesday, September 17, 2024. (Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau)

MANILA, Philippines — Dismissed Bamban Mayor Alice Guo has been ordered by the Valenzuela court to appear in the House of Representatives, the Philippine National Police said on Wednesday.

PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said that the city’s regional trial court (RTC) approved the appearance of the former mayor, whose real name is Guo Hua Ping, at Thursday’s quad committee hearing on the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (Pogo) probe.

“There is a  court order coming from the Valenzuela RTC directing the PNP to bring the person of Alice Guo tomorrow to attend the Quad Committee hearing in our Congress,” Fajardo said in a press briefing at Camp Crame.

Guo, currently detained at the PNP custodial center, cannot be brought to the House without prior court approval.

READ: Ex-PNP chief allegedly took bribe to help Alice Guo, siblings flee PH

Capas, Tarlac RTC Branch 109 served a warrant of arrest against Guo on Sept. 5 over her alleged violation of the Anti Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

However, her graft case was transferred to Valenzuela RTC.

Senate Majority Leader Francis Tolentino, who first revealed this development, cited Republic Act 10660, which restructured the Sandiganbayan and included provisions requiring cases to be tried in a judicial region other than where the official held office to prevent undue influence. Tolentino also noted that the Capas RTC is in the same judicial region as Bamban town, which could potentially affect the impartiality of the trial.

Since her arrest, Guo has appeared at  Senate hearings twice: on Sept. 9 and Sept. 17.

Capas RTC set her bail at P180,000, but she has not posted bail so far, resulting in continuous police custody.

READ: Alice Guo’s graft case now under Valenzuela court

Guo left the country on July 18 and was arrested in Jakarta, Indonesia on September 4.

The former mayor has been the subject of scrutiny over her alleged ties to a raided Pogo firm in Bamban town.