Senate Digs Deeper: Unexplained Wealth, POGO Ties Cloud Bamban Mayor’s Future

In order to fully examine the situation of Bamban Mayor Alice Guo, the Senate Committee for Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality is getting ready to investigate it.

Because of his mysterious fortune and ties to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), critics have called Guo the “POGO Mayor”.

The leader of the committee, Senator Risa Hontiveros, has indicated that pertinent agencies will be present during the upcoming executive session. Guo herself may be a witness in a later public hearing that is influenced by these findings.

Hontiveros stressed that the investigation is focused on possible dangers to national security, criminal activity, and a lax regulatory framework for POGO operations rather than ethnicity.

Prior hearings exposed Chinese POGO syndicates’ use of fake IDs, and a Bamban raid exposed hacking and espionage activities.

Hontiveros said, “This is about national security, criminal activities, accountability in public service, the rights and welfare of women and children, and the systemic failure to regulate POGO operations.”

Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero said that evidence is needed for any accusations regarding Guo’s foreign citizenship.

Guo may be suspended, but the Philippine Commission on Elections (Comelec) has declared that he is still eligible to run for reelection. Guo’s future is still undetermined while the Senate continues to probe for information.

Original Story by: Asian Gaming Brief