Dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo revealed before a Senate panel that she signed the final page of her counter-affidavit in the human trafficking case against her just before she left the Philippines in July.
“‘Yung last page po ng document po nasign ko po. Na-sign ko po bago po ako umalis...July first week," Guo mentioned during the Senate Committee hearing on Tuesday.
Cath Salazar, Secretary to Guo, stated that she obtained the pre-signed page at QJJ Farm, as directed by Guo, and then attached it to the counter-affidavit document.
Guo's secretaries, Salazar and Gee Pepito, recounted how they had Guo's counter-affidavit notarized, emphasizing that they were merely following their boss's instructions.
The name of Cheryl Medina, the executive assistant of Sual, Pangasinan Mayor Liseildo Calugay, has surfaced, with allegations that she assisted Guo in getting her counter-affidavit notarized.
Salazar narrated that Guo instructed her via phone call to contact Calugay's executive assistant for assistance in finding a lawyer to notarize the document.
Senator Risa Hontiveros, Chair of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality, presented a sworn affidavit from an individual known as "Ka Dante."
He alleged that he facilitated the notarization of Guo's counter-affidavit and mentioned that Calugay's assistant had contacted him regarding the matter at hand.
Timeline of events based on Ka Dante's affidavit
On August 12, Medina reached out to him to ask if he knew a notary public who could notarize an affidavit for an unnamed individual and requested assistance with the process.
On August 13, he was instructed to go to Concepcion Road in Concepcion, Tarlac, to meet the person whose affidavit required notarization. That same day, Ka Dante reported that Medina provided him with the contact number of someone named “Kat” (Guo’s staff, Cath) for coordination.
Furthermore, on August 14, Ka Dante went to Elmer Galicia's office in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan. However, the lawyer informed him that the document could not be notarized without Guo's presence.
Despite prior inhibitions on Guo's presence, the affidavit was successfully notarized.
“Alam mo ba by that time na wala na siya sa Pilipinas,” Senator Joel Villanueva questioned Salazar.
"Hindi po, your honor," Salazar answered.
“Hindi ka ba nag-isip? Ang daming abogado sa Bamban. Bakit maghahanap sa ibang lugar ng abogado?” Villanueva further questioned Guo's secretary.
"Ang alam ko po your honor dahil ‘pag nakita pa lang po ‘yung name ni ma’am, ayaw na po ng lawyer. Kaya direct instruction po si ma’am na tawagan ko po si ma’am Che,” Salazar said.
“Dahil walang lawyer na gagawa nang gustong ipagawa ng iyong principal. Is that the correct statement?” Villanueva asked.
“Siguro po, your honor,” said Salazar.
Senator Sherwin Gatchalian asked Guo if the affidavit was completed upon her signing the document, to which Guo replied, "It's partially done."
Gatchalian further questioned Guo about whether she had reviewed the counter-affidavit document, to which she invoked her right against self-incrimination.
Guo's counter-affidavit was prepared by the Gana, Atienza, Avisado Law Firm. Lawyer Ray Ann Co, a junior at the firm who worked on the affidavit, stated that they sent the draft to Salazar on August 14.
Salazar noted that the completed counter-affidavit was sent to Guo via the messaging app WeChat.
“Nasaan ‘yung kliyente niyo at that point in time?” Hontiveros questioned Co.
“We have no knowledge of her whereabouts, your honor at that time,” Co answered.
“I find that very difficult to believe,” Hontiveros remarked.
Co further mentioned that they had limited interaction with Guo at that time due to alleged death threats she was receiving.
The new revelations contrast with Atty. Elmer Galicia's statement that Guo signed the affidavit in his presence.
"Biktima po ako. I am invoking my right against self-incrimination,"Galicia told the senators.
"Despite the overwhelming testimonies and he doesn't want to talk about his inability to perform his duties and responsibilities as a lawyer, I just feel sorry for him. It appears that he is a willing victim," Villanueva said.
Under the new rules of the Department of Justice (DOJ), Assistant Prosecutor Isser Josef Gatdula stated that a counter-affidavit can only be notarized outside of the department if no prosecutors are available.
"But considering this case, there are plenty of available prosecutors in the Department of Justice," Gatdula said explaining that the notarization of Guo's counter-affidavit was invalid.
