SIBLINGS IN HIGH PLACES A photo of ex-President Rodrigo Duterte with his economic adviser Michael Yang (right of frame) is flashed during Tuesday’s Senate hearing that focused on Yang’s elder brother Tony (inset), the arrested Chinese national whose real name is Yang Jian Xin. —Richard A. Reyes
MANILA, Philippines — A brother of former President Rodrigo Duterte’s economic adviser on Tuesday admitted to being a Chinese national who illegally acquired his Filipino citizenship to form several companies, including a steel manufacturing firm that allegedly hosted a Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) in Misamis Oriental.
Testifying at the Senate committee hearing on crimes associated with Pogos, Yang Jian Xin, also known as Tony Yang, admitted that he was born in China, but was able to obtain a Philippine birth certificate through the problematic and graft-laden system of late registration of birth.
Fielding questions from Sen. Risa Hontiveros, he said that he arrived in the Philippines in 1998 allegedly to help his grandfather manage their family’s businesses.
READ: Michael Yang’s family tried to make CDO their ‘kingdom’ – PAOCC
Tony, the elder brother of Duterte’s special economic adviser Michael Yang, was arrested at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport last week.
“You have been deceiving this country for the last 26 years,” Hontiveros, who has been presiding over the Senate hearing, told Yang.
Denial
Speaking through an interpreter, Yang denied that he was involved in Pogo, but acknowledged that he had secured documents issued only to Filipinos, such as a gun license, a tax identification number and a Philippine birth certificate.
He also admitted that he had assumed the Filipino identity Antonio Maestro Lim in setting up his companies and in transacting business with the government.
“During that time, it was my grandfather who helped me come up with this birth certificate. Maybe he did this for the convenience of (running our) businesses here,” Yang said in Mandarin.
He, however, said that he had no Philippine passport and that he was using his Chinese passport in his travels.
“The initial intention of my grandfather is for me to start a business here. That’s why I use my English name so that I can also apply for business permits and for other documentation that will be needed for the business,” Yang added.
His explanation on how he got hold of his birth certificate and other government-issued documents was similar to that of dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo, who had insisted that she was a natural-born Filipino despite the biometric evidence showing she was a Chinese citizen named Guo Hua Ping.
Wide network
Hontiveros, chair of the Senate committee on women, children, family relations and gender equality, said Yang and Michael were both connected with other fellow Chinese nationals previously linked to Pogos.
She also presented photos showing that Yang had been rubbing elbows with senior government officials, among them former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Benjamin Acorda.
Yang and his supposed business associates were seen attending private functions with Acorda when the latter headed the regional police office in northern Mindanao.
In another photo, Acorda was also photographed with Guo’s brother Wesley Guo and Sual, Pangasinan Mayor Liseldo Calugay, who is suspected to be the manager of Guo’s Pogo company.
Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) senior vice president Raul Villanueva had earlier claimed that a retired PNP chief regularly received protection money from Pogos, but it was not clear if he was referring to Acorda.
Hontiveros also showed documents showing that Yang was the president of OroOne Inc., a registered provider of Pogo company Xionwei Technology Co. Ltd. Inc.
HIGH-DIGIT FIGURE Tony Yang’s pricey-looking ring is quite a scene-stealer during Tuesday’s Senate hearing. —Richard A. Reyes
Xionwei, she said, is owned by Lin Weixion, also known as Alan Lim, who was previously linked to the Pharmally Pharmaceutical Corp. mess.
‘Architect’ of illegal operations
Appearing at the Senate hearing, Philippine Anti-Organized Crime Commission (PAOCC) Undersecretary Gilbert Cruz said Yang had built their own “kingdom” in Misamis Oriental to cover up their alleged unlawful activities.
“Tony Yang is the silent, but thinking (member) among the Yang brothers,” Cruz said in response to a question from Hontiveros. “He’s the one running the businesses of the Yangs, including a Pogo, a big steel company, hotels, and rice mill.”
According to him, individuals who want to put up their own business in Cagayan de Oro should first get the blessing of the Yangs.
The PAOCC official said Yang had employed more than 1,000 Chinese nationals to work in his Pogo inside the Philippine Veterans Investment Development Corp. (Phividec) compound.
Yang, he noted, practically controlled the sprawling Phividec industrial complex in Tagoloan town, where his Philippine Sanjia Steel Corp. is located.
“While Michael is more prominent, the truth is Tony is believed to be the real architect of the operations of the Yangs,” Hontiveros noted.
Guo adjusting well in jail
In Pasig, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology spokesperson Jayrex Bustinera said Guo did not get any special treatment after her transfer to the city’s jail on Monday.
Guo, who is facing graft, money laundering, and qualified human trafficking charges, was moved from the PNP custodial center at Camp Crame following an order from a Pasig court.
The former mayor was “mostly compliant” during her first night behind bars but she was initially “shocked” at the condition of her cell, Bustinera said in a television interview.
“I think she was expecting a different cell… but there was no tantrum, no violent reaction. I think she has adjusted pretty well,” he said.
Bustinera said they have encouraged her six cell mates to talk to her “so she won’t feel isolated,” but she has so far not engaged much with them as of Monday.
The former mayor will be served the same P23 per meal as other inmates, although her visitors can bring cooked food consumable for the day. —with a report from Frances Mangosing