SolGen Speaks on Mayor Alice Guo Issue amid Quo Warranto Petition
SOLGEN – Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra explained the two cases on who may replace Mayor Alice Guo if she’s ousted.
Until now, suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo has yet to surface amid a pending arrest order issued by the Senate. She also skipped the latest hearing set by the upper chamber to investigate the illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming operations in the country.
Guo is currently under suspension as Bamban, Tarlac Mayor. Aside from the accusations regarding her alleged involvement in the illegal POGO operations in her town, the suspended Mayor is also facing questions regarding her identity.
The fingerprints of Mayor Alice Guo matched with the fingerprints of Guo Hua Ping according to the NBI or the National Bureau of Investigation. Guo Hua Ping is a Chinese national who entered the country in 2003.
Guo previously denied all the allegations against her. After she skipped the July 10 Senate hearing allegedly due to trauma from the way she was treated in previous hearings, the upper chamber cited her in contempt and an arrest order was released.
However, the suspended Mayor could not be located. Senate President Chiz Escudero is disappointed over the PNP‘s failure to locate Guo until now. The authorities all her registered addresses but found negative presence of the suspended Mayor.
Amid the questions about her identity, the Office of the Solicitor General or SolGen filed a quo warranto petition. It is a writ that will challenge a person’s qualification to hold a public office.
Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra previously stressed that Mayor Guo is a Chinese national. She may also be ousted from office due to a serious act of dishonesty if it is proven. Under the 1987 Philippine Constitution, the law requires election candidates to have a Filipino citizenship.
Who may replace Alice Guo if she is ousted from being mayor of Bamban, Tarlac? Based on a report on ABS-CBN News, there are two (2) possible cases. The SolGen explained on the possible successor in each case.
According to Solicitor General Guevarra, if the petition for quo warranto is granted and she’s declared ineligible to run for public office, Guo will be replaced by the candidate for the 2022 mayoralty race in Bamban, Tarlac who garnered the second highest votes next to Guo.
On the other case, based on the report, if the Mayor is removed from office due to serious acts of dishonesty, she will be replaced by the vice mayor. As of this writing, Guo has yet to release a new statement.