Malacañang orders cancellation of PH passports of Alice Guo, siblings
Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin has ordered the cancellation of the passports of dismissed Bamban mayor Alice Guo and her family.
In a memorandum signed and released on Tuesday, Aug. 20, Bersamin cited reports of Guo using her Philippine passport to fly to Malaysia and then meeting her family in Singapore, before traveling to Indonesia.
The executive secretary also noted the arrest warrants against Guo and her family for “unduly refusing to appear” in the Senate for the ongoing probe into her alleged involvement in illegal activities of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs).
The order is under R.A. No. 11983 or the New Philippine Passport Act which states that a DFA secretary may cancel a passport in the interest of national security.
“The DFA Secretary may cancel a passport in the interest of national security. Under the same law, one of the grounds for the cancellation of a Philippine passport is when the court issues an order for its cancellation as the holder is a fugitive from justice,” the order read.
Besides Alice Guo’s passport, Bersamin also ordered the cancellation of Wesley Leal Guo, Sheila Leal Guo, and Cassandra Ong’s passports.
“Given the foregoing and in the interest of justice, this Office hereby directs that appropriate action be taken for the cancellation of the Philippine passports of Guo, her family, and Ong,” it read.
Before this, Sen. Risa Hontiveros reported that Guo had already fled the country, showing proof that she departed on the night of July 17 and arrived in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on July 18.
"Ayon sa aking isa pang source, tumuloy si Alice Guo sa Singapore, kung saan nag tagpo tagpo sila ng kanyang magulang na si Lin Wen Yi at Guo JianZhong," she continued. "The couple flew in from China on July 28, 2024. Mistulang reunion sila doon kasama si Wesley Guo at si Cassandra Ong."
Following this, Guo’s lawyer Atty. Stephen David claimed that the dismissed mayor is still in the country, but the Bureau of Investigation said on Aug. 20 that Guo is currently in Indonesia.
Guo has been subject to scrutiny since she was allegedly linked to two POGOs in her bailiwick: Hongsheng Gaming Technology Incorporated, which was raided in February 2023, and Zun Yuan Technology Incorporated, which was raided in March this year.
She was questioned as to why she was supposedly unaware of such alleged illegal activities. In past Senate hearings, she was also asked about her background to confirm her nationality, which she has since maintained that she's Filipino and has denied having ties to POGOs in Bamban and being a Chinese spy.
But as weeks passed, authorities discovered discrepancies in several documents involving Guo, as well as holes in her stories.
In July, the Senate issued arrest orders against Guo and seven others for skipping recent hearings on the raided POGO hubs in their place.
She’s also facing other complaints in line with alleged tax evasion and human trafficking.