Marcos vetoes PH citizenship bid of Pogo-linked Chinese

POGO LINK In this photo from Sen. Risa Hontiveros’ Facebook page, Chinese national Li Duan Wang, also known as Mark Ong, is seen beside Duanren Wu, the alleged brains behind the Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) hub raided by authorities in Porac, Pampanga, last year. They were seen together during a casino launch at Clark Freeport, Pampanga.

There will be “dire consequences” and a “clear and present danger” if Li Duan Wang, the Chinese national with alleged links to illegal offshore gaming hubs, is granted Philippine citizenship.

This was how the President Marcos justified his decision to veto House Bill No. 8839 that sought to grant legislative naturalization to Li, Malacañang said on Friday.

READ: Marcos vetoes naturalization of Pogo-linked Li Duan Wang

Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary and Palace press officer Claire Castro, in a press briefing, quoted from Mr. Marcos’ veto message, which the Palace has yet to release.

“I am unable to blindly ignore the alarming and revealing warnings raised by our relevant national agencies that find the subject grantee’s character and influence to be full of ominous and dire consequences, if not of a clear and present danger,” the President said, in an apparent reference to warnings raised earlier by Sen. Risa Hontiveros against Li.

Senate vote

Castro said ignoring such warnings would be “negligence of duty” on the President’s part, as she pointed out that Filipino citizenship is a privilege that is not given freely to any foreigner.

“It should also not be used to advance dubious interests. The President added that when we grant Filipino citizenship, we are not just conferring legal rights. We are opening up the honor of our history, our race and our heritage. It is only right that those who receive it must be also subject to the aspirations of our nation,” she said.

On Jan. 27, the Senate, voting 19-1, approved on third and final reading HB 8839 authored by Albay Rep. Joey Salceda and Negros Occidental Rep. Juliet Marie Ferrer and sponsored in the Senate by Majority Leader Francis Tolentino. Unlike similar measures, it did not provide a specific justification for Li’s naturalization.

The senators who approved the bill were Sherwin Gatchalian, JV Ejercito, Nancy Binay, Pia Cayetano, Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, Jinggoy Estrada, Christopher “Bong” Go, Loren Legarda, Imee Marcos, Robinhood Padilla, Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III, Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., Francis Tolentino, Raffy Tulfo, Joel Villanueva, Cynthia Villar, Mark Villar, Miguel Zubiri and Senate President Francis Escudero.

Praise from Risa

Hontiveros, who cast the lone dissenting vote, said then that she could not, in good conscience, support the measure, citing serious red flags surrounding Li’s background.

Castro on Friday said the President was unconvinced with Congress’ decision, hence his veto of HB 8839.

“The President is not deaf not to heed data or facts about the supposed-to-be grantee’s dubious interests. The President was not convinced with Congress’ decision to grant Philippine citizenship to Li Duan Wang,” she said. “This is because we don’t confer Philippine citizenship if the grantee has dubious or doubtful interests.”

Hontiveros, in a statement on Friday, praised Mr. Marcos’ decision to veto Li’s citizenship measure, describing it as a “firm stand for our national interest.”

“This shows our government’s commitment to protecting the sanctity of our Filipino citizenship,” Hontiveros said. “The President’s veto is demanded by the weight of available evidence.”

According to Hontiveros, who had headed the Senate investigation on Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo)-linked crimes, Li is a junket operator and partner of Duanren Wu, a Chinese fugitive who had supposedly financed the construction of the Pogo hub allegedly owned by dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo.

Wu also partly owned Whirlwind Corp., which bought the property that hosted a similar offshore gaming complex in Porac, Pampanga.

Hontiveros also linked one of Li’s businesses to Yatai Spa, owned by She Zhijiang, the Chinese national who was held in Thailand after claiming to be a Chinese spy.

Li, the senator said, is associated with the Philippine Jinjiang Yuxi Association, which is reportedly tied to the Chinese Communist Party’s United Front Work Department. In official documents filed in the Securities and Exchange Commission, Li presented himself as a Filipino named Mark Co Ong.

‘Bad faith’

Hontiveros said Li’s attempt to conceal these information from lawmakers showed “bad faith” on his part.

“From the very beginning, I voiced strong opposition to [Li’s] naturalization because the facts were deeply alarming: The Chinese national holds multiple taxpayer IDs, is linked to illegal Pogo operations, and is affiliated with a group reportedly tied to the Chinese Communist Party,” Hontiveros said.

“These are not small issues or minor technicalities. Rewarding [Li] with Filipino citizenship, despite these red flags, would have sent the wrong message and set a dangerous precedent,” she stressed. —WITH A REPORT FROM INQUIRER RESEARCH