Senator Risa Hontiveros clarified in a media statement that the ongoing Senate hearings concerning Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo are not intended to target Filipinos of Chinese heritage.

The senator highlighted that her own maternal great-grandmother was of pure Chinese descent. The revelations about Mayor Alice Guo, Hontiveros explained, emerged following evidence of her alleged involvement in POGO-related crimes, some of which were based on the mayor’s own statements.

“Marami nang ebidensya ang nalikom laban sa mga POGO sa huling walong hearing ng aking komite. Among these is the proliferation of fake identification documents from PhilHealth IDs to passports. This just shows how Chinese POGO syndicates have managed to obtain fraudulent Filipino identities through corrupt individuals in our government agencies. At ang malala kay Mayor Guo, she is a public servant,” Hontiveros stated.

“Huwag din nating kalimutan na ang POGO sa munisipalidad ni Mayor ay may ‘di umanong hacking at surveillance activities. Considering China’s aggressive influence operations around the world, it would be remiss of the Senate not to look into this angle,” she added.

Senator Hontiveros mentioned that several government agencies have more information they wish to disclose about POGOs, which they will do in an executive session before the next public hearing.

“Sa gitna ng lahat ng ito, inuulit ko ang paalala ko na hindi kailanman magiging katanggap-tanggap ang racism, xenophobia at Sinophobia. Regardless of our heritage, all law-abiding citizens should not be the subject of hate and discrimination,” she declared.

“This is not a witch hunt. This is not about politics. This is about national security, criminal activities, accountability in public service, the rights and welfare of women and children, and the structural failure of our system to regulate POGO as a business model,” the senator concluded.

📷 Sen. Risa Hontiveros FB