Manila court disqualifies former Bamban mayor Alice Guo, rules she is Chinese national

A Manila Regional Trial Court has disqualified former Bamban, Tarlac mayor Alice Guo, ruling she is not a Filipino citizen but a Chinese national. The 67-page decision, issued by Branch 34 on 27 June 2025, granted a quo warranto petition filed by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG).

The petition questioned Guo’s eligibility to hold public office, citing inconsistencies in her identity and citizenship. The court concluded that Guo, whose legal name was identified as Guo Hua Ping, is the daughter of Chinese nationals and not a natural-born Filipino.

The ruling effectively nullifies her election as Bamban mayor, with the court stressing that her lack of Filipino citizenship disqualified her from candidacy at the outset.

The court noted that her Philippine passport and birth certificate did not provide conclusive proof of citizenship. It described her as a “usurper” of the mayoral office, declaring her victory void from the moment her candidacy was filed.

Guo, now detained for almost 10 months, already faces a non-bailable charge of qualified human trafficking linked to illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) activities in Bamban. She has denied wrongdoing, insisting she merely leased her land to the operators.

In August 2024, the Office of the Ombudsman had dismissed her from office for grave misconduct. Alongside Chinese nationals Zhang Ruijin and Lin Baoying, she faces human trafficking charges after authorities raided a scam hub in Bamban in March 2024.

The raid uncovered 432 Chinese nationals, 371 Filipinos, and others from Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan, Indonesia, and Rwanda. The site was tied to Baofu Land Development, a company established in 2019 by Guo, Zhang, Lin, Cypriot national Huang Zhiyang, and Filipino national Rachel Joan Malonzo Carreon. All five co-founders now face qualified human trafficking charges, a crime punishable by life imprisonment.

Zhang and Lin had also been convicted in Singapore for money laundering and forgery in a S$3 billion case.

In its decision, the Manila court observed that no records existed of Guo’s supposed Filipino parents, named as Angelito Guo and Amelia Leal. The absence of such records cast doubt on her claim that she was the lovechild of Angelito and Amelia, whom she never met.

Expert testimony from the National Bureau of Investigation played a central role. Alfredo Kahanding, chief of the Dactyloscopy Division, confirmed through fingerprint analysis that Alice Guo and Guo Hua Ping were the same person. The analysis linked her to an earlier immigration record showing her entry into the Philippines in July 1999 at age nine, on an investor’s visa as a dependent of her Chinese parents.

Her birth certificate, registered only in 2005 when she was 19, claimed she was born in Tarlac in 1986 to Angelito and Amelia. The court dismissed this as insufficient, accepting the fingerprint evidence as “infallible and faultless”.

The decision stated that Guo had assumed a false identity to enter politics, warning of the risks to national security if foreigners could exploit the system by posing as citizens. The court acknowledged the OSG and the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission for presenting decisive evidence.

Lawmakers responded quickly to the verdict. Senator Sherwin Gatchalian welcomed the decision, calling it confirmation of long-standing doubts about Guo’s background. He urged authorities to hold her and her enablers accountable.

“The court ruling affirming that Alice Guo is a Chinese national and finding her guilty of usurping and exercising the Office of the Bamban Mayor validates what we’ve long been saying,” said Gatchalian. “She should also be prohibited from owning land. Foreigners must never be allowed to use government for their own selfish interests.”

Guo’s case continues to unfold, as she faces both criminal prosecution and administrative consequences. Legal observers note that her disqualification may set a precedent for tighter scrutiny of candidates’ backgrounds, particularly in cases involving suspected foreign influence.

In the Philippines, only natural-born citizens are eligible to run for public office. The disqualification of Guo underscores the judiciary’s role in safeguarding electoral integrity amid concerns over organised crime and foreign involvement in local governance.

In 2024, Philippine authorities reported that POGOs had been linked to scams, cybercrime, and human trafficking operations, raising broader questions about their regulatory oversight. Guo’s case highlights how alleged links between local officials and POGO-related activities can have national security implications.

The court’s ruling not only strips Guo of her eligibility but also strengthens ongoing criminal proceedings, setting the stage for further legal developments in the months ahead.