Senate Pres. Chiz Escudero Speaks on Suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo’s Pending Arrest
CHIZ ESCUDERO – The Senate President reacted on the Philippine National Police (PNP) still not being able to locate Mayor Alice Guo.
The authorities have visited all the registered addresses of suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo. However, there was negative presence of the suspended Mayor who is currently facing accusations about her alleged involvement in the Philippine Offshore Gaming operations in her town.
Aside from the accusations about her alleged illegal POGO involvement, the suspended Mayor is also facing questions about her identity. The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) has filed a quo warranto petition against Mayor Guo over her identity issue.
After skipping the July 10 Senate hearing, the upper chamber’s committee cited Guo for contempt. An arrest order was issued by the Senate against Mayor Guo.
Amid her pending arrest, Mayor Alice Guo previously released a statement expressing her willingness to face the accusations with evidence “at a proper forum”. She denied all the allegations against her and told the senators to focus on other key issues instead like poverty.
The statement of the suspended Mayor did not sit well with Senate Pres. Chiz Escudero who said that he cannot tell the senators about their job. Mayor Guo apologized to Senate Pres. Escudero saying she was just suggesting.
Suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo once again skipped another Senate hearing on illegal POGOs scheduled on July 29. Based on a report on GMA News, Senate Pres. Chiz Escudero is disappointed over the Philippine National Police (PNP) failing to locate the suspended Mayor.
“Oo, nakakahiya, kahiya-hiya para sa PNP na hindi magawa ito, lalo na na nandito pa naman daw sila sa bansa, ayon sa Bureau of Immigration,” the Senate President said.
Furthermore, Senate Pres. Chiz Escudero also recalled that there are other personalities with a pending arrest order with bigger cases but have yet to be located by the authorities. Among these are former Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief Gerald Bantag and Pastor Apollo Quiboloy.
Meanwhile, based on the report, despite the failure to locate Guo, the Senate President is not recommending the reduction of the budget for the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI).
According to Escudero, there is a bigger chance that the authorities will not be able to locate the personalities with an arrest order if their budget will be reduced. He stressed that it is not like carrot and stick where punishment is needed when a wrong is done. According to him, there is a need to look at all the circumstances.