MANILA, Philippines – The Bureau of Immigration had information that dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo had exited the Philippines on August 15, four days before the Sen. Risa Hontiveros made her manifestation but reported it to the authorities only on the 20th.
This was the narration of Bureau of Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco Tuesday on the sub-committee hearing of the Committee on Justice and Human Rights digging into the Guo family’s mysterious escape from Philippine borders without detection.
“We received the information from PNP IG [Philippine National Police Intelligence Group] on August 15 in the afternoon… “Upon receipt of that information we immediately conducted validation on the information,” Tansingco said.
Guo had reportedly sneaked to Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia since July 18. The BI as well as the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission confirmed that she had left the country and is currently within Indonesian borders, at least according to information from international immigration counterparts.
“We got the confirmations on 19 in the morning up to the 20th when all the information we got were validated already.” Tansingco said.
Hontiveros, who first made the public revelation that Guo had already sneaked out of the country, questioned the BI why the Department of Justice was informed late. The senator also noted that the DOJ was still on the information that the former mayor was still in the country on August 19.
Tansingco said they still had to verify conflicting information they were receiving.
“We informed [the] DOJ and the Office of the Executive Secretary on the 20th in the morning when there was already a confirmation and validation of the information that were coming in considering there were conflicting information that we are receiving,” he said.
Among the intelligence they had to verify were reports of flights from Manila to Malaysia via Batik Air and a flight from Malaysia to Denpasar in Indonesia which turned out to be a flight from Denpasar to Malaysia.
Tansingco said they also received a report that Guo flew to Singapore which they immediately conducted verification on.
“When we had the correct information already it was the time we informed the Office of the Executive Secretary and the office of the Secretary of Justice,” Tansingco said.
While understanding the part that BI had to verify their information first, Hontiveros stressed that the agency should have sounded the alarm to law enforcement immediately upon receipt of an intelligence report from the PNP.
“I understand that Commissioner pero what I’m getting at is ‘yung sinasabi na rin naming paulit-ulit na, better and more timely coordination kasi lalo na pagkatapos ng manifestation ko so public na ‘yun and ‘yun na nga sinabi ng DOJ na nandito pa si Alice Guo sa araw na ‘yon hindi ba’t sana mas maige kung ininform niyo na sila sa information sa information na meron ang BI mula pa sa PNP.
Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada asked why the BI confirmed that Guo was still in the country when information that she was already out already reached the agency.
“Yes, your honor [we answered in the affirmative] because based on our records there was no departure of Alice Guo at that time,” Tansingco said.
The National Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice and the PAOCC all said they only knew about Guo’s escape when Hontiveros made the manifestation on August 19.
