Senator Loren Legarda questioned PSA officials about hundreds of fake birth certificates used for passports in 2023. She wanted to know if the PSA had taken action against those involved.

The Senate of the Philippines is investigating possible corruption within the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). They suspect a group inside the PSA is illegally providing birth certificates to foreign nationals so they can get Philippine passports.

“There were 308 fake birth certificates that you said were issued, that were used for Philippine passports, in 2023. So I would assume that the DFA (Department of Foreign Affairs) had canceled their passports. And I would assume that you had filed cases or even invalidated the fake birth certificates,” Legarda told PSA officials present during the hearing.

A lawyer for the PSA said they are investigating and taking legal action. He explained there are two types of fraud: fake documents created at PSA offices and fake information submitted to local civil registries.

“Certainly, we have determined different kinds of fraud here. The first fraud that is proliferating is the tampering on the issued documents in our PSA outlets. These are the most frequent fraudulent action. The other type of fraud is fraud at the source, which is happening at the local civil registry office,” Ambatali explained.

“Lumaki po ako sa farm…”

At the second hearing of the Senate committee on women and children about crimes related to Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGOs) Wednesday (May 22), Guo repeatedly told senators that she barely remembered her childhood because she grew up in seclusion in a farm in Tarlac.

The mayor also stuck to her earlier narrative that she was homeschooled because her father did not want her to mingle with others because she sired her with a maid.

Legarda, however, pressed Guo to disclose specific details about her childhood, such as who watched over her at the farm and if she had playmates.

“If you’re really Chinese and fronting for other people, go back to your country! But if you are Filipino and you were born here, convince us because we want to be convinced,” she said.

“Kasi parang scripted. ‘I was born in this.’ That’s all I can remember.’ Yet when I ask you the same question, it’s the same rote,” Legarda added.

“Ako po ay lumaki sa Barangay Virgen Delos Remedios, Bamban, Tarlac. Ako po ay isang Filipino, lumaki po ako kasama po ang mga empleyado namin sa farm,” Guo replied. “Thirty-eight years ago, wala po ako talagang maalala nang sobra.”

Legarda then cut Guo off, saying she repeated details she already said.

“You don’t have to say the same thing,” a visibly irked Legarda said. “Ano ba, huwag tayong robot!”

When asked to speak in Fookien, the language commonly used by Filipinos of Chinese descent, Guo complied but told senators she is Filipino.

Simpleng tao…

Senator Risa Hontiveros is leading the investigation into issues related to Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs). During the hearing, they looked into the case of Mayor Alice Leal Guo of Bamban, Tarlac.

“She claimed in the televised interview that her mother left her after she was born. But in the hearing, you admitted that there were other children and you have two more siblings. And that you learned their names are Shiela and Siemen, and you admitted that you lied in the last hearing to protect them,” Hontiveros pointed out.

Senators believe Guo may not be a Filipino citizen and might be linked to illegal activities. They found inconsistencies in her birth records and background story. Guo denied wrongdoing.

“Ipinipilit niyo na simpleng tao lang kayo. Pero ang laman ng SALN niyo, daan-daang milyong piso. Mayor Guo, pagsisinungaling pa rin po ang paglilihim ng katotohanan,” she pointed out.

“Kayo lang ang nakilala kong tao na hindi daw kilala ang kapatid, pero magkasama sa travel abroad. Nakikipag-partner sa milyun-milyong pisong negosyo na di kilala ang kasosyo. Humihiram ng kotse, pero di alam ang pangalan ng hiniraman. Nagbenta ng chopper at may utang pa sa inyo, pero di kilala ang pangalan ng sisingilin,” Hontiveros said.