NBI chief Santiago urges Alice Guo to surrender

National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) Director Jaime Santiago on Tuesday urged suspended Bamban, Tarlac mayor Alice Guo to surrender to authorities. 

“[Kung] nakikinig si Mayor Alice, no, wala namang problema na hindi na-solve. Puwede siya makipag-usap, sumuko siya sa Senate, um-attend siya ng hearing. Lahat yan maayos,” Santiago said in a press briefing.

(If Mayor Alice is listening, there’s no problem that can’t be solved. She can communicate, surrender to the Senate, and attend the hearing. Everything can be fixed.)

The NBI chief issued the remark when asked for comment on Senator Jinggoy Estrada threatening the NBI and the Philippine National Police of budget cuts in 2025 should they fail to arrest Guo.

Santiago noted that though the Senate has issued an arrest order against Guo for her repeated failure to attend its hearings on illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO), no charges have been filed against her yet.

Guo, however, is facing a complaint for human trafficking before the Department of Justice in connection to the raided POGO hub in her locality.

Her citizenship is also being questioned due to her inconsistent testimonies about her background and the supposed dubious documents regarding her Filipino citizenship.

“Wala pa siyang charges.So kung ako si Mayor Alice, makipag-ugnayan ka na sa Senate nang matapos na itong usapin,” Santiago said.

(There are no charges against her yet. So if I were Mayor Alice, I would coordinate with the Senate so that this can be done already.)

He said that the NBI has not received any feelers on Guo’s surrender.

“Sana, ito ngayon, sa pakiusap ko sana naririnig ni Mayor Alice. Hindi siya madedehado kapag sa akin siya sumuko,” he said.

(I wish Mayor Alice could hear me. She will not be at a disadvantage if she surrenders to me.)

On Monday, the NBI said there were sightings of Guo in Bulacan before the issuance of the arrest order against her.

Meanwhile, the Office of the Solicitor General has filed a quo warranto petition against Guo, which may result in her removal from public office.

The OSG has also filed a petition seeking to cancel Guo’s birth certificate. If cancelled, Guo would lose her most important defense evidence about her identity. —KBK, GMA Integrated News