Former Bamban mayor Alice Guo, who has faced numerous inquiries into her citizenship and alleged connections to Chinese-backed illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), broke down in a House panel hearing on Friday, September 27, after being shown an Al Jazeera documentary that implicated her in espionage.
The documentary features tycoon She Zhijiang and includes a dossier on a person named Guo Hua Ping, whose details closely resemble Guo, including her birth place and a photo that appears to show her. The report claims Guo Hua Ping is the daughter of a Chinese woman, Lin Wen Yi, and that Guo had sought funding from She Zhijiang for her mayoral campaign in Bamban. She Zhijiang, however, denied giving any financial support, stating that he did not want to “offend the government of the Philippines.”
The report also suggests that Guo’s alleged address in Fujian Province, China, is associated with the Chinese Communist Party, and that local residents identified her as Lin Wen Yi’s daughter, who left the village in 2002. She Zhijiang went further, claiming both he and Guo Hua Ping had “dedicated [their] lives to China’s Ministry of State Security,” and urged her to “tell the world the truth” to avoid repercussions.
Davao Oriental 2nd District Rep. Cheeno Almario presented the documentary to the committee, emphasizing the gravity of the claims. “Even if we have been conducting our own research, this is another source from a completely different party,” Almario said. He also pointed out that residents in Fujian recognized Guo as someone who had not been raised in the Philippines, as she had previously claimed.
However, Guo firmly denied the allegations. “Your Honor, I don’t know him [She Zhijiang], and I never asked for any campaign funds during my campaign period,” Guo said when asked for comment. “It’s unfair to me, and I want to tell all my fellow Filipinos and the entire Philippines, I love the Philippines.”
Guo also responded to accusations that she was the individual identified in the documentary. “I’m not a spy. I’m not the person in the picture, and I’m not who he [She Zhijiang] claims I am,” she stated, adding that she plans to take legal action against She Zhijiang and Al Jazeera for defamation.
When asked by PBA Party-list Rep. Margarita Nograles about She Zhijiang’s possible motives for naming her, Guo said, “It’s better to ask him because he’s the one who released the video. I am definitely not a spy.”
Despite her strong denials, Guo’s emotional response during the hearing raised eyebrows. She admitted to feeling unfairly targeted by repeated accusations of espionage, stating, “I’m emotional because it’s unfair to be labeled a spy.”
Guo is now preparing to pursue legal avenues to challenge the allegations presented in the documentary.
