Philippine mayor Alice Guo to face arrest warrant for skipping senate hearing
- Guo cites ‘death threats’ for not attending a committee probe into her alleged links to an illegal online gaming firm in Bamban town
The Philippine senate ordered on Wednesday an arrest warrant against suspended mayor Alice Guo after she cited death threats for failing to appear before a committee investigating her alleged ties to a raided online gaming firm in the town of Bamban.
Guo and her family members, who also skipped the hearing, were held in contempt of the legislature for ignoring the subpoenas issued by the committee headed by Senator Risa Hontiveros.
In a letter to Hontiveros, Guo said “malicious” accusations have taken a toll on her mental health and “debased my dignity”.
“Not to mention, I have been constantly receiving death threats that I cannot simply ignore as I am afraid that these threats may endanger my life,” she said.
Hontiveros dismissed the explanation as “an old excuse to avoid investigation”, saying if Guo wanted to clear her name, she should appear at the hearing and answer the questions from the committee.
“We find her claims in the letter void of credibility,” the senator said, adding Guo did not provide a medical certificate to support her assertions.