A Chinese ‘asset’? Philippines raises alarm over mystery mayor suspected of links to Pogos
- Alice Leal Guo, mayor of small town Bamban, was unable to provide details about her early life and background during a senate hearing
- Raid on Philippine offshore gaming operator in Bamban uncovered documents addressed to Guo, who has denied knowledge of Pogo operations
“Is she, along with others like her who have mahiwaga [mysterious] backgrounds, an asset inserted by China into our government to have a heavy influence in Philippine politics?” Senator Risa Hontiveros asked during a press conference on May 8.
Hontiveros’ comments came a day after a senate hearing in which Guo failed to provide details about her early life and background, fuelling suspicions about her links to Zun Yuan Technology Corp, a Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) in the Baofu compound in Bamban, a town northwest of Manila where Guo has been mayor since 2022.
Investigators have accused Pogos of being involved in human trafficking, cyber scams and possibly hacking and surveillance of government agencies.
During a senate hearing on May 7, Hontiveros warned that “separate sources in the intelligence community and various executive agencies are sounding the alarm of large tracts of land around EDCA sites being purchased by Chinese nationals with Filipino identity documents [involving] late registration of birth”.
