Comelec OKs probe, filing of complaint vs Guo

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is set to start the preliminary investigation that could pave the way for the filing of criminal charges against suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo for alleged misrepresentation.

In a memorandum order, the Comelec directed its law department to file a motu proprio complaint and conduct a preliminary investigation into Guo’s mayoralty candidacy in 2022.

Comelec Chairman George Garcia said the poll body’s law department would conduct the preliminary investigation to determine whether Guo misrepresented herself to be qualified to run in the mayoralty race despite being a foreign national.

Garcia said the investigation is expected to take two to three weeks, after which the law department will submit its findings and recommendation to the Comelec en banc.

He said that if the commission finds probable cause, election offense charges would be filed against Guo before the Tarlac Regional Trial Court.

If ever, this would be the first case of misrepresentation charges to be filed by the Comelec against a candidate, according to Garcia.

Even if a criminal complaint is filed against Guo, however, Garcia said the Comelec still cannot prevent the suspended mayor from filing her certificate of candidacy, possibly for the mayoralty race next year.

“We have no right to refuse,” Garcia said, although he has an assurance that the Comelec will not be deterred from running after unqualified candidates even after they win the elections.

Last week, the Comelec law department recommended to the commission the filing of a complaint against Guo after a fact-finding probe revealed that the fingerprints in her voting records and those in the records of the Chinese individual Guo Hua Ping in the National Bureau of Investigation and Bureau of Immigration belong to the same person.

Human trafficking

Meanwhile, the human trafficking complaint lodged against Guo and others has been submitted for resolution, according to the Department of Justice.

DOJ spokesman Mico Clavano said Guo and three other Chinese incorporators were not able to file their respective counter-affidavits and were no longer given another extension.

This means that they have waived their right to answer the allegations against them and the prosecutor will resolve the case based only on the complaint.

“The prosecutor will resolve the case on the basis only of the complaint because the respondents failed to give their side to the allegations. The prosecutor will only consider the complaint,” Clavano said in an interview yesterday.

The DOJ official, however, said the rest of the respondents were able to submit their counter-affidavits.

Guo, like in the two previous preliminary hearings, did not show up at the DOJ.

Meanwhile, three respondents, including former Technology and Livelihood Resource Center deputy director general Dennis Cunanan, were granted an extension in filing their counter-affidavits.

Clavano said that among the reasons for granting the extension is the respondents are either out of the country, have changed counsel or only recently impleaded.

The next preliminary hearing is set on Aug. 16.

The human trafficking complaint was filed in connection with the raided Philippine offshore gaming operator (POGO) hub in Guo’s municipality, from where over 800 foreign nationals were rescued.

Probe consolidation

In another development, the House of Representatives on Monday moved to consolidate into one big committee the inquiries being undertaken by several panels in relation to illegal POGOs and the extrajudicial killings in the past administration.

Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales Jr., who represents Pampanga’s third district, said the nation “is currently grappling with complex issues involving public order, the proliferation of dangerous drugs and human rights violations.”

“We must address these issues in a coordinated and timely manner to ensure justice and the rule of law,” he said, as Reps. Joel Chua (Manila’s third district) and Patrick Michael Vargas (Quezon City’s fifth district) filed House Resolution 1843, making as one three investigating House committees.

Chua and Vargas wanted the House committees on dangerous drugs, led by Surigao del Norte 2nd Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers; public order and safety, led by Laguna 1st District Rep. Dan Fernandez and human rights, led by Manila 6th District Rep. Benny Abante, to hold just one consolidated investigation to avoid overlapping functions.

“These individual inquiries by the three committees have been persistent and yet exhaustive. Still, there are issues that are interwoven, entailing scrutiny into intricate details,” Gonzales said in his privilege speech.

Batangas 2nd District Rep. Gerville Luistro then proposed that the House committee on public accounts of Abang Lingkod party-list Rep. Joseph Stephen Paduano, of which Luistro is a member, be included in HR 1843 joining the Barbers, Fernandez and Abante committees.

The proposals were forwarded to the rules committee, led by Majority Leader Manuel Jose Dalipe.

The separate probes conducted by the three separate committees “have shown an overlap or commonalities on individuals or resource persons that may be invited in the hearings,” according to Gonzales.

Another panel, the committee on games and amusement chaired by Cavite 6th District Rep. Antonio Ferrer, is also investigating illegal POGOs.

“A joint investigation will enable us to conduct a more inclusive and thorough examination of these interlocking issues. This coordinated effort will ensure that our findings are comprehensive and that our legislative recommendations are practical and encompassing,” Ferrer said. — Daphne Galvez, Cecille Suerte Felipe, Delon Porcalla