The Office of the Ombudsman has ordered the dismissal of suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo. She was found guilty of misconduct and was meted the penalty of dismissal from service, with forfeiture of all her retirement benefits and perpetual disqualification to reenter government service.
Photo: Senate of the Philippines
The Ombudsman noted in a 25-page ruling that Guo’s actions from her time as a private citizen to her tenure as Bamban mayor in 2022, including her involvement in the raided Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) hub in her locality “point to a willful intent on her part to violate the law or disregard established rules.”
“The series of acts are interconnected leaving no other conclusion than that they were committed by Guo with ulterior motive of self-interest,” it added.
The Ombudsman also rejected her defense that she had already divested herself from her company, Baofu, which owned the land where the illegal POGO hub was located, stating it is a “clear conflict of interest.”
This came after the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) previously filed graft charges against her and other local officials. She has been suspended since June.
Guo became the center of Senate hearings due to her alleged ties to an illegal POGO hub raided in Bamban, a connection she has denied. Her citizenship was also questioned during several hearings because of the inconsistencies surrounding her personal life.
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) then confirmed that she has the same fingerprints as the Chinese passport holder named Guo Hua Ping. In July, the Senate ordered Guo’s arrest following her consecutive absences in the ongoing Senate hearings. Since then, she has been evading arrest by the authorities.
As of writing, Guo’s camp has yet to comment on the matter and her whereabouts are still unknown.
