Senate must show evidence instead of squeezing info from Alice Guo —lawyer

Instead of calling dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo a liar and forcing her to testify against herself, the Senate should present evidence that would substantiate their allegations.

This was the statement of Guo's legal counsel Stephen David as he justified the ex-mayor's citation of her right against self-incrimination during the Senate investigation into her alleged links to illegal POGOs.

"Kung meron ka na ebidensya, patunayan mo. Huwag mong puwersahin ang tao. Huwag mong takutin. Huwag mong sigawan. Huwag mong ikulong. Bigyan mo ng respeto ng bilang sa tao," David said in a phone interview with reporters.

(If you have evidence, prove it. Don't force people. Don't threaten them. Don't shout at them. Don't imprison them. Give people the respect they deserve.)

"Ngayon pa lang nakikita ko sa Senate, hindi nila kaya patunayan. Kaya nga, kaya nga pinipilit siya mag-amin o magsalita o ano...sa ating sistema ng gobyerno, hindi mo pwedeng pilitin ang isang tao na idiin ang sarili niya. Hindi ka pwedeng mag-extract ng confession o magbigay ng testimonyang compulsion na pilitin mo siya, aminin mo yan, aminin mo yan," he added.

(From what I am seeing now, the Senate can't prove it. That's why they're forcing her to admit or speak up or whatever...in our government system, you can't force someone to incriminate themselves. You can't extract a confession or compel testimony by forcing them and tell her you have to admit that.')

He cited as an example the allegations that there were Immigration officers or government officials who supposedly helped Guo escape the country.

"Sabi nila, lumabas siya sa pamamagitan ng tulong ng mga Immigration o kung sino. Ilabas mo, sino yung tumulong na yan. Ilabas mo kung sino yung sinuhulan na yan. Sabi nila, may binigyan ng pera, etcetera. Alam mo, madali naman kasi magsabi na binigyan ng pera. Pero ang masakit, ang tao pinaniniwalaan yun kahit walang basehan, kahit wala silang prueba. Ang nangyari lang, nagbitaw ka ng salita, pinaniwalaan ng tao, sa mata ng tao, guilty na yung tao, kahit wala naman silang masubstantiate na ebidensya," he said.  

(They said she was able to leave with the help of the Immigration or someone. Bring out the one who helped her, bring out whoever was bribed. They said someone was given money, and so on. You know, it's easy to claim that someone was bribed. But what's painful is that people believe it even without basis, even without evidence. What happens is that you make an accusation, people believe it, and in the eyes of the public, the person is already guilty, even if they don't have any evidence to substantiate it.)

He also mentioned the documents presented related to Guo's bank transactions, which he believed were not strong enough and were only used for "generalizations."

"Sasabihin lang nila sa Senate, ito galing kay ganito, dinaan sa ganitong bangko, ganyan-ganyan. Eh, puro generalization yun eh. Tapos, kukuhanin mo yung detail sa tao. Kukuhanin mo yung detalye niya kay Alice. Kasi kung talagang solid yung evidence, labas mo na lang... Huwag na lang puro general allegations 'yan," David said.

(They'll just say in the Senate the money came from this, it passed through that bank, and so on. But that's all just generalizations. Then, you'll get the details from the person. You'll get the details from Alice. Because if the evidence is really solid, just present it... Don't just keep making general allegations.)

"Kung malakas 'yun (evidence), ba't kailangan pa nila si Mayor Alice na mag-confirm n'yan o magsalita? Anong use nun? Di ba? Irrelevant yun eh kung ano yung sasabihin ni Mayor Alice kung mayroon ka ng dokumento. Kaya lang nagiging relevant ang sinasabi niya kasi gusto siyang umamin," he added.

(If there's strong evidence, why do they still need Mayor Alice to confirm it or say something about it? What's the point of that? What Mayor Alice says is already irrelevant if you have the documents. The only reason her statement becomes relevant is because they want her to admit it.)

For David, the Senate's investigation is "in aid of prosecution" which is intended to show that Guo is guilty of the accusations against her.

"Kasi ang nangyayari, kung bakit ina-expect natin yung mga ganyang klaseng sagot ni Mayor Alice, kasi ito in aid of prosecution. Parang gusto mo lang talaga ma-establish yung guilt ng tao. Wala na tayong pag-hi-hearing, wala na tayong pag-lilitis kasi gamitin mo na lang sa husgado yan. Yan, inamin niya, sinabi niya sa Senate investigation yan. Wala na, tapos na. Much as well, sabihin mo na lang sa husgado, guilty. So ano pa ang nangyari sa ating due process of law?" he said.

(What's happening is that we're expecting that kind of response from Mayor Alice because it's in aid of prosecution. It's as if you just want to establish the person's guilt. We no longer need to hold a hearing or a trial because you can just use that in court. She admitted it, she said it during the Senate investigation. That's it, it's over. You might as well just say it in court, guilty. So what's happening to our due process of law?)

David also compared the Senate investigation to the "medieval times" where he said the rule of law is not followed.

"Sa panahon ng medieval time, 'pag hindi sila naniniwala sa iyo, torture, bugbog, kukulong. Ngayon, hindi ka tino-torture, sinisigawan ka, pinapahiya ka, sinasabihan na sinungaling. At worse, kinukulong ka under the guise of contempt," he said.

(In medieval times, if they didn't believe you, they would torture, beat, and imprison you. Nowadays, they don't torture you, but instead, they shout at you, humiliate you, and call you a liar. At worst, they imprison you under the guise of contempt.)

GMA News Online sought the comment of Senators Risa Hontiveros, Sherwin Gatchalian, and Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada on David's comments but they have yet to respond as of posting time.

The Senate investigation centered on the case of Guo over her alleged involvement in the operations of an illegal POGO hub in Bamban, Tarlac where she previously held the mayoral position.

For the investigation, it was discovered that Guo has the same identity as Chinese national Guo Hua Ping.

Guo also fled the Philippines amid the Senate investigation, but she was intercepted in Indonesia on September 4.

Guo is now facing human trafficking and money laundering charges. A quo warranto petition and a petition to cancel her birth certificate were also filed against the dismissed mayor.—LDF, GMA Integrated News