Senate arrest warrant looms on suspended Mayor Alice Guo

Metro Manila, Philippines — A Senate committee on Wednesday, July 10, said it is set to issue an arrest warrant against suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo after snubbing summons to attend its inquiry on illegal gaming firm operations.

Sen. Risa Hontiveros, who chairs the panel leading the investigation, approved the move pending Senate President Chiz Escudero’s signature for the issuance.

Guo and seven others, including some of her family members, were also cited in contempt, while 15 others would be issued with subpoenas again.

After such a pronouncement, Guo’s camp ran to the Supreme Court seeking a petition for certiorari against the contempt citation and impending arrest warrant.

“We are saddened, although expected naman namin ‘yun [we already expected it],” Alice Guo's lawyer Stephen David said.

Hontiveros said the courts are “open to all individuals, regardless of nationality.”

“On our part, at the Senate, the law is clear: ignoring a subpoena has consequences. Adhering to a subpoena has never been optional,” she added.

Guo is at the center of the Senate probe on a raided Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator hub in Bamban town, also revealing questions about her identity and citizenship.

Despite a subpoena, the suspended mayor asked to be excused in the hearing, saying she is physically and mentally “unfit to endure a rigorous situation such as a Senate hearing.” She added she has been receiving death threats.

Senators said her absence was deemed an “insult” to the institution.

NewsWatch Plus Multiplatform Producer Jelo Ritzhie Mantaring contributed to this report.