Philippine mayor Alice Guo to face arrest warrant for skipping senate hearing

The Philippine senate ordered on Wednesday an arrest warrant against suspended mayor Alice Guo after she cited death threats for failing to appear before a committee investigating her alleged ties to a raided online gaming firm in the town of Bamban.

Guo and her family members, who also skipped the hearing, were held in contempt of the legislature for ignoring the subpoenas issued by the committee headed by Senator Risa Hontiveros.

In a letter to Hontiveros, Guo said “malicious” accusations have taken a toll on her mental health and “debased my dignity”.

“Not to mention, I have been constantly receiving death threats that I cannot simply ignore as I am afraid that these threats may endanger my life,” she said.

Hontiveros dismissed the explanation as “an old excuse to avoid investigation”, saying if Guo wanted to clear her name, she should appear at the hearing and answer the questions from the committee.

“We find her claims in the letter void of credibility,” the senator said, adding Guo did not provide a medical certificate to support her assertions.

Guo said the medical professionals she consulted refused to issue a report fearing they would be subjected to “ridicule”, similar to what she experienced.

Senator Nancy Binay, a member of the committee, told the hearing that “mental health was a serious matter which should not be used as a justification to make lies”.

“This committee is ordering the arrest of the persons cited in contempt to be submitted to the Senate president for his signature,” Hontiveros said.

Guo’s lawyer, Stephen David, said the arrest order was not “surprising” because “we know the implications of what will happen if you do not honour the subpoena of the senate”.

Senate President Francis Escudero said a