PCG to revise rules for private boats amid Alice Guo ‘yacht escape’

The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) will revise its pre-departure inspection regulations on private boats amid the claim of dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo that they left the Philippines via three boat transfers and one of the vessels used was a yacht.

PCG Commandant Admiral Ronnie Gil Gavan made the statement at the Senate finance subcommittee's briefing on the proposed P180.89-billion budget of the Department of Transportation (DOTr) and its attached agencies and corporations for 2025.

"In our existing memorandum circular on pre-departure inspection (PDI), vessels which are non-common carriers are not included in the PDI and that is the reason why we are now revising the circular so the Coast Guard will have role in the enforcement in these kind of vessels," Gavan told the Senate panel.

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III asked Gavan if the PCG has a role in preventing incidents similar to the case of Guo.

"May role pa dapat ang PCG doon? Na-intercept niyo ba dapat yon?" Pimentel asked.

(Should the PCG have a role there? Should you have intercepted them?)

According to Gavan, the PCG is eyeing to implement the revised PDI guidelines by October.

The revision will "include the non-common carriers in the implementation of pre-departure inspection," the PCG chief said.

Gavan also told Pimentel that the PCG has already a legal basis in revising such guidelines and they do not need a new law to implement this.

With this, Pimentel concluded that the PCG "could've done that even before" Guo's case happened.

"Why do we need an Alice Guo incident before we can anticipate such a scenario and cover it?" the senator asked.

Gavan explained that the regulation was crafted in 2009.

"I'm taking my role now to revise it," Gavan said.

"With this development, the Coast Guard recognizes that we should adapt, we should do more. We'll be coordinating with MARINA (Maritime Industry Authority) to come up with a better regulation to cover this one," he added.

Pimentel acknowledged Gavan's honesty.

"So may nakakita ng butas and I’m sure ‘di lang sila ang gumamit ng butas na 'yan. So ganun pala talaga ka-porous ang ating boundaries, ang ating mga borders, ang ating coasts. So it’s time to, I hope the Philippine Coast Guard will share your realization with the other agencies na ganyan," Pimentel said.

(So somebody has spotted a loophole and I'm sure they're not the only ones who have used that loophole. It just shows how porous our boundaries, borders, and coastlines really are. So it's time to, I hope the Philippine Coast Guard will share this realization with other agencies.)

The senator likewise echoed this reminder to the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) as he recalled a privilege speech delivered by Senator Grace Poe last February 2023 about the alleged "human smuggling" at Ninoy Aquino International Airport using private aircraft.

"Kasi we were imagining the various ways na nakaalis sila meron akong footage na nakita pinalabas ata ni Senator Grace Poe 'yung nag-private jet. Hinatid sila mismo ng van nila doon sa mismong doorstep ng private jet," Pimentel noted.

"Parang helpless 'yung authorities nung sinara na yung door e (of the private jet). Wala na... We just accept what is written. Siguro kung five names dito, tapos walong tao [ang nandoon] eh hindi natin alam. So that's how porous our boundaries and borders are even by air," he went on.

(It's as if the authorities are helpless when the door of the private jets is closed. There's nothing we can do... We just have to accept what is written. If there are five names listed here, but eight people are actually on board, we wouldn't know. That's how porous our boundaries and borders are, even by air.)

The minority leader told the CAAP and PCG to "shape up" as these incidents may have national security implications.

"Let us shape up kasi delikado po...'yun ang concern natin the national security implication of having such porous borders. Porous na tayo by geography pero ang problema by legal framework anticipated na nga natin yon eh... It's in the execution,"he said.

(Let's get this straight because it's risky... our concern is the national security implications of having such porous borders. Geographically, we're already vulnerable. In our legal framework, we have already anticipated it... It's all about the execution.)

In one of the Senate investigations, Guo claimed that she, along with her supposed siblings--Wesley and Shiela, left the country by sea.

She said that they climbed aboard a yacht docked at a port in Metro Manila and left at around 10 p.m. sometime in July.

After traveling on the yacht, Guo said they shifted to a bigger vessel. She said she doesn't know the exact location where they made the transfer.

Afterwards, Guo said her group stayed in one room for days. She added that she wasn’t aware of the time because they were told not to use their cellphones.

Guo said she and her supposed siblings then boarded a small boat to reach Malaysia.

It took a month before the Philippine government became aware that Guo and her siblings had already left the country in July.

Alice Guo is the subject of multiple complaints, one of which was filed with a Tarlac court, which ordered her arrest in connection to her alleged connections to the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) in Bamban, Tarlac that was raided by a joint task force composed of law enforcement and military agencies for alleged illegal activities.

Among the complaints the dismissed mayor is facing are graft, money laundering, material misrepresentation and human trafficking.

Alice Guo was arrested in Indonesia on September 4 and arrived in the Philippines on September 6. —RF, GMA Integrated News