September 13, 2024 | 4:43pm
MANILA, Philippines — Dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo on Thursday, September 12, submitted a counter-affidavit in response to the Commission on Elections’ (Comelec) case of material misrepresentation.
The submission has been confirmed by Comelec chairman George Garcia in a message to reporters on Thursday afternoon, saying that the counter-affidavit was filed by Guo’s lawyer.
“Filing the counter affidavit is a recognition of the exercise of jurisdiction of the Comelec. Now, we can terminate the preliminary investigation and proceed to the resolution of the controversy,” Garcia said.
The dismissed mayor was given by the poll body only until September 12 to file her response after several extensions.
On August 13, the Comelec en banc formally served a subpoena against Guo.
She was initially given until August 23, to file a counter-affidavit, but the deadline was extended to August 27 due to public holidays, according to Garcia.
Guo’s request for an extension until September 1 was approved but was further extended due to bad weather. In their second appeal, her lawyers cited difficulties in communicating with Guo and noted that the final draft of her counter affidavit was still awaiting her signature and verification.
Comelec partially granted this second motion, allowing a ten-day extension until September 12, instead of the requested 15 days, with the condition that no further extensions would be permitted.
Guo’s argument
The case against Guo stemmed from allegations that she falsely claimed to be a Filipino citizen in her voting records, despite evidence showing that she is actually a Chinese national named Guo Hua Ping.
In response, Guo insisted that her Filipino citizenship is true and she complied with the requirements of the law with regard to her candidacy as the former mayor of Bamban, Tarlac.
She said as long as her birth certificate has not been cancelled, she remains as a citizen of the country.
“With due respect, unless otherwise declared to be invalid,said birth certificate is deemed valid and regular on its face. Thus, it is a conclusive proof of my identify as a Filipino,” Guo’s counter-affidavit read.
After disappearing from public view following Senate hearings in May regarding her alleged involvement in raided Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator hubs, Guo fled the country in July, despite being on the immigration lookout bulletin.
Guo was eventually brought back to the Philippines on September 6 aboard a private plane after being apprehended in Jakarta, Indonesia.
She faces multiple complaints, including charges of qualified trafficking in persons, tax evasion and money laundering.
The dismissed mayor is also facing a quo warranto and a possible cancellation of her birth certificate, along with a graft case filed against her in a Tarlac court. The graft case was transferred to a Valenzuela court on Friday, September 13.
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