By Junex Doronio
MANILA — With the controversy generated by the “puzzling citizenship” of Bamban (Tarlac) Mayor Alice Guo, Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra on Wednesday (15 May 2024) said that his office may file a quo warranto petition questioning her right to hold public office if it finds a possible reason to do so.
Guevarra said the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) is now gathering relevant information on the case of Guo, who is being investigated for alleged involvement in an illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operation (POGO) hub and whose identity as a Filipino is being questioned.
“If there is good reason to believe that the subject unlawfully holds or exercises a public office, the OSG may commence action on its own. More specifically, a petition for quo warranto,” the SolGen said in his interview on GMA Integrated News.
Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman George Garcia earlier said the OSG may file a quo warranto petition.
It was learned from the Supreme Court (SC) that a quo warranto proceeding is a legal remedy to determine a person’s right or title to a public office and to oust the holder from its enjoyment.
For her part, Guo said she had been asked by many individuals who she was since 2022.
“Ako po si Alice Guo, taga Barangay Virgen delos Remedios. Ang nanay ko po ay Pilipina. Ang tatay ko po ay isang Chinese,” Guo said then.
But Senator Risa Hontiveros has aired doubts, saying Guo’s birth certificate indicated that her father was a Filipino but was said to be Chinese in business records.
(el Amigo/MNM)
