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Saturday, June 8, 2024

Gibo: POGOs, Mayor Alice Guo a matter of national security

 

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Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. speaking during the Sweden National Day reception held in Makati Thursday. Reporters interviewed him at the sidelines of the reception, about the West Philippine Sea, POGO operations and Bamban Mayor Alice Guo, and the defense cooperation between Philippines and Sweden.

DEFENSE Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. said the case of Bamban Mayor Alice Guo and the operation of Chinese-run Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) in the country are considered issues of national security.

“We should stop these syndicated criminal activities operating out of the our base, which weakens our financial standing, our country ratings, corrupts our society,” Teodoro told reporters at the sidelines of the reception of Sweden’s National Day where he is a guest of honor and speaker.

He said the DND now considers the case of Mayor Guo as a matter of national security, because of the “scale of the illegal activities” within the 10-hectare property of POGO compound in Bamban.

“Nobody can claim ignorance of what was happening because if authorities have information and they are not from there, how can people who are supposed to be managing and monitoring in the area, from the PNP in the area to the higher authorities, they should have known and ought to have known,” he said.

When asked if the DND believes Guo is a Chinese spy, he replied, “I won’t go there, you know because there are so many sub issues already.”

Teodoro conceded though that the DND is “are very conscious on the illegal course, aggressive and deceptive activities of foreign elements.”

“Other countries have caught Chinese spies like the UK, Canada, America. And since we have a conflict, dispute with China, it is incumbent upon us to be on guard to counteract internally and externally these measures,” he said.

Gibo’s take on Guo

Teodoro, who served as a congressman of the first district of Tarlac, believes there is “enough evidence” to file a case against Mayor Guo based on her testimonies at the Senate committee hearings.

“She (Guo) admitted under oath with counsel — but she used a diminutive term –’Fina-cilitate ko lang ang pagkuha ng LONO – letter of no objection.’ Kung kukuha ka ng permit, bakit ka kukuha ng facilitator? Ibig sabihin, alam ng nag request sa kanya na meron syang kakayahan na makuha ang LONO,” he explained.

By facilitating the LONO and by being a member of the corporation, he said, Guo can be held criminally liable as “principal by indispensable cooperation.”

Also, based on Guo’s statements, Teodoro believes that “there was criminal conspiracy” involved to commit a criminal enterprise.

“Co-incorporator ka, myembro ka ng korporasyon. Myembro ka ng board. Equity investor ka. Kahit na ganun lamang ang partisipasyon mo, di mo pwedeng sabihin wala kang kinalaman kasi bahagi ka ng corporate structure.

“The act of one is the act of all even though you did not participate, just as long as you are part of the conspiracy

“As long as you are co-conspirator, you are liable for human trafficking, torture, illegal detention and all other illicit acts that happen,” Teodoro said.

He stressed that it is important to determine her citizenship, as it would determine whether or not she is qualified to own a land in the Philippines that became the basis of her investment in a POGO company.

If Guo is proven to be a Chinese national, Teodoro said, she can be liable for falsification of document as well as violation of anti-dummy law. 

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