By Liza Soriano
MANILA — Senators are calling on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to cancel the passport of dismissed Bamban mayor Alice Guo, arguing that this move would restrict her travel.
“It’s incredibly brazen of her to misuse a Philippine passport to flee. Her passport should be nullified immediately,” said Senator Hontiveros.
“Cancelling her passport will limit her ability to travel. It will also make it easier to track her movements if she’s not constantly on the move. Furthermore, she shouldn’t have been using a Philippine passport in the first place,” she added.
Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Ejercito also urged the DFA to revoke Guo’s passport and to request INTERPOL to issue a red notice for her.
“It seems my suspicion that Guo left through unofficial means was correct. However, we must hold the Bureau of Immigration accountable for this issue, as their representative had stated in a July 29 hearing that Guo was still in the country,” Ejercito said.
Estrada pointed to Section 4 of Republic Act No. 11983, the “New Philippine Passport Act,” which allows the DFA Secretary or authorized consular officials to cancel a passport in the interest of national security.
Hontiveros had previously revealed that Guo had traveled to Malaysia and was now in Singapore, a fact later confirmed by the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission.
However, as of this posting Tuesday (20 Aug 2024), Guo’s legal counsel, Atty. Stephen David, maintains that the dismissed mayor is still in the country.
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