Metro Manila, Philippines – “This is not a jail.”
Retired Lt. Gen. Roberto Ancan, the Senate Sergeant-at-Arms, cleared the air about the detention facility for suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo and her family members.
The Senate ordered them arrested on Saturday for skipping hearings on the illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) in Bamban. Authorities failed to find them in their registered addresses.
Guo’s lawyer, Stephen David, earlier said the embattled mayor is considering turning herself in, but fears for her life after receiving death threats. Guo denied involvement in illegal POGO operations.
Ancan, who retired as chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ Visayas Command in 2021 after over three decades in service, said Guo has nothing to fear while in Senate custody.
“Here, I can assure her security 24/7. I’ve done it before, I was a commander before and I assured my people within my area of responsibility that they are safe,” Ancan said.
He allowed media access to the detention room prepared for the Guo family, which is next to a police detachment within the Senate compound in Pasay City.
“If there’s a need mag backup nandiyan lang sila (police) but primary ang magbabantay sa kanila dito is our security personnel,” Ancan said.
[Translation: If there’s a need for backup, the police are available, but the primary ones to watch over them here are our security personnel.]
The detention room is air-conditioned with three bunk beds – some with new mattresses. It has a comfort room, sink, and water dispenser.
The detention room was a daycare center until it was refurbished last year in anticipation of possible contempt citations involving numerous resource persons, Ancan said. He added that the Guos will be the first to be detained there.
Ancan said they will be served three meals a day with snacks, and given time to get fresh air and sunlight in the morning. Their immediate family members and legal counsel can visit them anytime, while friends will be vetted first.
Senate President Francis “Chiz” Escudero also wants a review of the rule that prohibits the use of cellphone and other gadgets while in Senate detention.
“Wala akong nakikitang dahilan kung bakit hindi. Hindi naman mga drug lord ito na pwede nilang ipagpatuloy yung kanilang operasyon sa loob ng detention. Pangalawa, wala naman akong nakikitang delikadong kaganapan na magte-text sila na mapuga sila sa detention facility. So pinapa-review ko. Titingnan natin,” Escudero said.
[Translation: I don’t see any reason why not. They are not drug lords who can continue their operations inside detention. Secondly, I don’t see any dangerous event where they might text and escape from the detention facility. So, I’m having it reviewed. We’ll see.]
Escudero added that the Senate detention is not a form of punishment but merely meant to compel the resource persons’ attendance in hearings.
