ALICE Guo has questioned why several senators seem "fixated" on her and dared them to present evidence against her at "a proper forum."
The suspended mayor of Bamban, Tarlac, faces arrest after refusing to attend Senate hearings probing her connections to Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO) sites where criminal activities have been reported.
In her official Facebook on Thursday night, Guo said she was ready to be questioned by Sens. Sherwin Gatchalian and Risa Hontiveros, chairman of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality, in a "fair trial" and at a "proper forum."
In her first statement after she was issued with an arrest order by the Senate, Guo said she failed to attend the last two hearings of Hontiveros' committee because of "severe exhaustion and trauma."
"While multiple open cases have been filed against me, I am deeply concerned about and keep questioning why Senator Win Gatchalian, Senator Risa Hontiveros, and the other offices seem fixated on me," she said.
Guo said she refuses to be used by anyone to "boost their political ambitions."
She appealed to her critics in the Senate to focus their attention on the critical problems the country is facing "instead of continuously threatening me with arrest and accusing me of being complicit in various [POGO]-related crimes, which are untrue and unfounded."
Senate President Francis Escudero gives updates about the upcoming State of the Nation Address and the investigation against Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo during a press conference at the Senate on July 19, 2024. Escudero also inspected the preparations for the opening of the Senate session on July 22, before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his third SONA. PHOTOS BY J. GERARD SEGUIA Senate President Francis Escudero gives updates about the upcoming State of the Nation Address and the investigation against Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo during a press conference at the Senate on July 19, 2024. Escudero also inspected the preparations for the opening of the Senate session on July 22, before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his third SONA. PHOTOS BY J. GERARD SEGUIA Senate President Francis Escudero gives updates about the upcoming State of the Nation Address and the investigation against Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo during a press conference at the Senate on July 19, 2024. Escudero also inspected the preparations for the opening of the Senate session on July 22, before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his third SONA. PHOTOS BY J. GERARD SEGUIA Senate President Francis Escudero gives updates about the upcoming State of the Nation Address and the investigation against Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo during a press conference at the Senate on July 19, 2024. Escudero also inspected the preparations for the opening of the Senate session on July 22, before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his third SONA. PHOTOS BY J. GERARD SEGUIA Senate President Francis Escudero gives updates about the upcoming State of the Nation Address and the investigation against Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo during a press conference at the Senate on July 19, 2024. Escudero also inspected the preparations for the opening of the Senate session on July 22, before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his third SONA. PHOTOS BY J. GERARD SEGUIA Senate President Francis Escudero gives updates about the upcoming State of the Nation Address and the investigation against Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo during a press conference at the Senate on July 19, 2024. Escudero also inspected the preparations for the opening of the Senate session on July 22, before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his third SONA. PHOTOS BY J. GERARD SEGUIA Senate President Francis Escudero gives updates about the upcoming State of the Nation Address and the investigation against Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo during a press conference at the Senate on July 19, 2024. Escudero also inspected the preparations for the opening of the Senate session on July 22, before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his third SONA. PHOTOS BY J. GERARD SEGUIA Senate President Francis Escudero gives updates about the upcoming State of the Nation Address and the investigation against Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo during a press conference at the Senate on July 19, 2024. Escudero also inspected the preparations for the opening of the Senate session on July 22, before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his third SONA. PHOTOS BY J. GERARD SEGUIA Senate President Francis Escudero gives updates about the upcoming State of the Nation Address and the investigation against Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo during a press conference at the Senate on July 19, 2024. Escudero also inspected the preparations for the opening of the Senate session on July 22, before President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. delivers his third SONA. PHOTOS BY J. GERARD SEGUIA
"Am I really the country's biggest problem that they need to focus on? Or they just want to project me as the antagonist/villain?" Guo said.
Replying to Guo's claim of bias against her, Hontiveros said on a Facebook post on Friday: "You lied about your connection to POGO, you lied about your identity, and every time you log in to Facebook, you invent something new. Don't worry, we are not fixated on you. We are just allergic to liars."
"Mayor Alice Guo or Guo Hua Ping, you have more posts on Facebook than attendance at Senate hearings," the senator continued. "Attendance before the Senate hearings is adherence to the rule of law."
Guo has also denied involvement in the death threats received by Gatchalian, who is a member of the Hontiveros committee.
The mayor said she has "no capacity, much less intent, to cause any harm against anyone. In fact, I, myself have been receiving actual and online threats since the start of this issue."
Guo said she does not hold a Chinese passport and hit out at those who disclosed her personal records.
"If anyone can disregard my right to data privacy by prying into my personal records, they will know whether I have left the Philippines without simply asking the [Bureau of Immigration] or the [Department of Foreign Affairs], as I do not hold a Chinese passport.
The Manila Times last week talked to classmates of Guo while she studied for three years in Grace Christian College (then known as Grace Christian High School), contradicting her claim that she was home-schooled by a certain "Teacher Rubilyn."
Guo called on authorities to investigate the matter so those who are innocent are not dragged into the issue.
After the Senate issued an arrest order against Guo and several others over the weekend, she has not been found in any of her known residences.
On Thursday, Gatchalian said Guo had left the country using her Chinese passport.
The senator has claimed that Guo was using Chinese and Philippine passports from 2008 to 2011.
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