Senate Urges Supreme Court to Dismiss Alice Guo’s Petition in POGO Investigation

August 19, 2024 Philippines Crime & Legal

Risa Hontiveros is urging the Supreme Court to reject Alice Guo’s petition that seeks to prevent the Senate from summoning her to appear in its ongoing hearings.

The Senate panel investigating the criminal activities tied to Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) has called on the Supreme Court to reject the petition filed by dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo. Guo’s petition seeks to prevent the Senate from summoning her to appear in its ongoing hearings.

The Senate committee on women, children, family relations, and gender equality, chaired by Senator Risa Hontiveros, invoked the “clean hands doctrine.” The Inquirer got this information from a 59-page comment dated August 8 and recently made available on the Supreme Court’s website. The “clean hands doctrine” asserts that a person seeking equity must also act equitably and approach the court without deceit or misconduct.

The Senate’s legal counsel, composed of Alfredo Molo III, Jeross Aguilar, Bertrand Matthew Belen, and retired Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio, emphasized that Guo had repeatedly refused to attend the Senate hearings.

“Petitioner has adamantly refused to attend the Senate hearing. Simply put, to grant the relief [s]he now seeks would be to reward her defiant attitude toward the processes validly issued against her,” they stated.

The Senate panel also pointed out inconsistencies in Guo’s statements during her testimony, which raised doubts about her background, including her origin, citizenship, family, education, and business relations. The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) confirmed that her real name is Guo Hua Ping, contradicting her previous claims.

On July 10, Senator Hontiveros cited Guo in contempt for failing to appear at the Senate hearing for the second time. On the same day, Guo’s legal team filed a petition for certiorari with the Supreme Court, aiming to stop the Senate committee from compelling her attendance at future hearings.

In her 78-page petition, Guo requested that the Supreme Court nullify the subpoena issued by the Senate panel and sought a temporary restraining order or writ of preliminary injunction against Hontiveros. Guo’s petition argued that the lawmaker had committed grave abuse of discretion, leading to a lack or excess of jurisdiction, and subjected her to “public prosecution and humiliation” during a previous public hearing.

Guo also questioned the relevance of the Senate’s inquiries, stating through her legal counsel, “With due respect, the inquiries, as apparent as it could be on the transcripts, did not really pinpoint how it can help the committee in crafting relevant laws in regulating POGO, in cyberfraud and in human trafficking.”

Her camp further claimed that the Senate’s actions violated her constitutional rights, including her right to due process and privacy. They argued that the questions posed to her did not pertain to her official duties but instead focused on her private life.