Filipino users on X were angered in particular by a group photo taken by an NBI agent while seated inside the car taking Guo (in striped outfit) to the Jakarta airport on Sept 5. - Photo: Philippines National Bureau of Investigation
MANILA: Filipinos turned to social media to express their outrage after Philippine government officials and law enforcement agents meant to escort fugitive ex-mayor Alice Guo back to the country to face criminal charges casually posed for photos with her while processing her deportation.
Critics said it was a mockery of the Filipino people and a cause for embarrassment, when Guo had evaded the Philippine law enforcement agencies by fleeing to Malaysia, Singapore, and then Indonesia in mid-July despite ongoing investigations against her.
One of the officials involved, Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos, later said he had asked for the picture to be taken as proof they had apprehended Guo, and did not realise she was posing for the camera.
Indonesian authorities apprehended Guo, who is accused of having links to Chinese criminal syndicates, on Tuesday (Sept 3).
She arrived in the Philippines after midnight on Sept 6, escorted by Abalos and Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief General Rommel Marbil, who took a chartered flight to Jakarta.
But Philippine social media feeds exploded hours before their arrival in Manila, as the two high-ranking officials were pictured with Guo, who was all smiles as she gave a double “peace” sign while inside the Indonesian police’s headquarters.
She was not handcuffed despite facing two arrest warrants – one from the Philippine Senate issued in July for snubbing its investigation on her alleged criminal ties, and another from a local court for graft charges, issued after Guo’s arrest on Sept 5.
“Never mind that Alice Guo escaping overseas is symbolic of their own failure,” wrote historian Kristoffer Pasion as he shared the controversial picture on X. “What a mockery of the Filipino people”.
Agents of the Philippines’ National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) who were tasked to escort Guo were also seen taking selfies with her in a Facebook Live video posted on Abalos’ official Facebook account.
Filipino users on X were angered in particular by a group photo taken by an NBI agent while seated inside the car taking Guo to the Jakarta airport on Sept 5.
In the picture, shared with reporters by the NBI itself, Guo was again smiling as she sat between two female agents in the back of the car. She had her hand on the shoulder of one of the female officers.
Social media users expressed disgust, with some saying that it looked like the NBI agents were going on a fun road trip with Guo.
X user @kelanocyte juxtaposed this picture with one taken in Oct 2020 of Filipina activist Reina Mae Nasino with cops swarming her as she visited the grave of her baby, who died while she was in detention.
“[The] Philippine justice system is a circus,” said the X user.
At a press conference at the airport in Manila when they arrived, Abalos said Guo had requested to see him and Marbil to raise concerns over alleged death threats against her.
“I assured her not to worry about these death threats. What’s important now is that she tells the truth. She should not be afraid,” said Abalos. He said he asked a staff member to take a group photo.
Guo, who was standing behind Abalos, briefly told reporters that she was smiling in Jakarta because she “felt safe” around the Philippine officials. She was handcuffed by the time she emerged from the plane, where her mugshots were taken.
Guo has grabbed the headlines since May after a Senate committee linked her to the alleged criminal activities involving Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos), the now-banned online casino industry.
Guo has ties to the Pogo firm Lucky South 99, which operated in Porac town in Pampanga province, 108km north of the capital Manila and near the sleepy town of Bamban, where she was elected mayor in 2022.
The Philippine authorities say these online casinos have lured foreign workers, including Chinese nationals, with promises of legal jobs in the country, only to trick them into working for scam hubs.
Guo and her alleged co-conspirators are accused of human trafficking, tax fraud and laundering criminal proceeds totalling 100 million pesos (S$2.3 million).
She is also alleged to be a Chinese national named Guo Hua Ping and suspected of being a Chinese “asset”. Guo, however, maintains that she is a natural-born Philippine citizen and has denied all allegations against her.
The ex-mayor will be facing the charges now that she is back in the Philippines. She will also be compelled to face the ongoing Senate investigation against her next week. - The Straits Times/ANN
