‘Alice in wonderland’
“CURIOUSER and curiouser!” cried Alice (she was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English).” ― Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland / Through the LookingGlass
IF YOU think we’re talking about that much beloved literature classic, I have to disappoint you.
We’re talking about another Alice who has recently become the next “flavor of the month” in another Senate joint committee investigation ostensibly in aid of legislation, which is rather curious. What legislation they will craft after this? The laws are already in place; what seems to be the problem is another classic in the Philippines – incompetence and proper implementation of laws.
So, who is this Alice, the current “flavor of the month” and interesting enough at least to Sen. Risa Hontiveros to warrant a Senate investigation?
Alice Leal Guo is a businesswoman and politician who has been serving as mayor of the municipality of Bamban, Tarlac since June 30, 2022. Guo was alleged by Senator Hontiveros to have links to illegal activities by Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) following the 2023 and 2024 raids in Bamban. Her Filipino citizenship has been questioned due to inconsistencies in her documents and testimony. Hontiveros has urged the government to investigate Guo’s early life and educational background.
According to Guo’s Certificate of Candidacy for Mayor filed before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in 2021, she declared herself as unmarried and a resident of Bamban since either 2003 or 2004. According to Comelec chairman George Garcia, she only registered as a voter of Bamban in April 2021, 13 months before the 2022 general elections.
So, is your curiosity aroused?
Alice Leal Gou claims that she was homeschooled.
Interestingly, her birth was only registered when she was 17 years old, and if that’s not doubtful enough, there’s the absence of hospital birth records and her inability to identify her homeschool provider. No publicly accessible information exists about Guo’s higher education, including whether she pursued college or any other form of tertiary education.
Rather curious, but this is the Philippines where people reinvent themselves to suit their political ambitions, I know for a fact a certain politician in Mindanao who just popped out of nowhere, registered himself in time for the Comelec residency requirement, ran for Congress and won because he has the resources. The funny thing is that he was born and bred in Iloilo City and has nary a connection in that congressional district except for the fact he has the money to buy everyone out.
The curious case of Alice Leal Gou is not really a singular incident; stranger things have happened in Philippine politics.
What’s curious is the relentless interest of Sen. Hontiveros, this after her almost rabid pursuit of Pastor Apollo Quiboloy which ended in a failure as her aim to bring Quiboloy to a Senate investigation and embarrass him to death, in aid of legislation of course, never happened.
Now she set her sights on Alice Leal Gou and linked her to illegal activities by POGOs following the 2023 and 2024 raids in Bamban.
By the way, during the Senate inquiry in aid of legislation, Senator Hontiveros floated the idea that Guo may be a Chinese “asset” trained to infiltrate the Philippine government and “have an influence in Philippine politics”.
Hmmm…the good senator might be reading too many spy novels and watching too many spy flicks on Netflix. But if that were the case, then the Bureau of Immigration, National Statistics Office, Comelec, etc. may have committed gross negligence and incompetence in vetting this Alice Leal Gou.