Metro Manila, Philippines – More than 1,600 suspected fake birth certificates are pending resolution, the Philippine Statistics Authority said, as lawmakers push to create a special body — rather than rely on the courts — to cancel fraudulently obtained birth documents.
During a hearing of the Senate committee on justice and human rights on Monday, Feb. 23, PSA Director Eliezer Ambatali said out of more than 1,600 petitions endorsed to the Office of the Solicitor General, only the case involving dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo has seen significant progress.
In September, the Tarlac Regional Trial Court declared Guo’s certificate of live birth void. However, her appeal remains unresolved.
“Nasa Court of Appeals pa rin ‘yung kay Guo Hua Ping [Guo Hua Ping’s case is still pending in the Court of Appeals],” Ambatali said, referring to the real name of Guo, who was found to be a Chinese national amid investigations into her links to illegal offshore gaming operations.
Ambatali added that a similar case against Guo’s sister, Sheila Guo, is currently in the pre-trial stage.
“This is a lengthy judicial process,” he said.
Another concern, Ambatali said, is the high cost of litigation.
“Like the case of Guo Hua Ping, the government spent around half million (P500,000) for this one case alone,” he added.
“So if you are going to pursue around 1,600 [petitions] that we have endorsed to the OSG… our budget will be drained,” he also said.
Senator Win Gatchalian lamented it took months for the court to nullify Guo’s birth certificate — even though her registered parents also had no birth or marriage records.
“Maraming tao nagtataka bakit hindi pa naka-cancel ang kanyang birth certificate [Many people were wondering why her birth certificate had not yet been canceled] because, people thought that it’s obvious she’s not Filipino,” Gatchalian said.
The senator pushed the creation of a special inter-agency committee that would have the authority to cancel fraudulently obtained birth certificates, instead of coursing such cases through local courts.
Ambatali said the PSA supports the proposed measure
“In the case of Guo Hua Ping, we cannot even tell kung existing talaga yung nanay kasi nagtanong tanong kami sa barangay nila sinasabi doon wala naman ganoong tao,” he said.
[Translation: In the case of Guo Hua Ping, we could not even determine whether her mother actually exists. When we made inquiries in their barangay, residents said there was no such person.]
Gatchalian also warned that foreign nationals who continue to hold fraudulent birth certificates could potentially run for public office, as Guo did.
Committee chairman Sen. Kiko Pangilinan ordered the submission of detailed information on the 1,600 pending petitions.
