AKO Bicol Party-list Rep. Raul Angelo “Jil” Bongalon (left) and La Union Rep. Francisco Pablo Ortega.
HOUSE members called on the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to be on the lookout and improve its screening of candidates for the 2025 midterm elections following the election of Alice Guo, whose nationality is now being questioned, as mayor of Bamban, Tarlac during the 2022 polls.
In a press briefing at the House, AKO Bicol Party-list Rep. Raul Angelo “Jil” Bongalon and La Union Rep. Francisco Pablo Ortega, both assistant majority leaders, also expressed support for a parallel investigation of Guo, who is the subject of a Senate hearing for allegedly backing and facilitating the operation of an illegal Chinese gambling site in Tarlac’s southernmost town.
Bongalon said the issue is about the proper and effective implementation of the Comelec rules as well as election rules and procedures.
“Because once we filed our certificate of candidacy, we should put with all honesty, all the legitimate information and ito po ay nino-notaryo, di ba? So, therefore dapat totoo ang mga detalye at tama ang nilalagay nito,” he said.
He added that this would serve a reminder in the midterm election this coming 2025.
“Lookout ito ng ating Commission on Elections. Dapat i-screen nila lahat ng mga kakandidato na ngayong darating na midterm election. Dapat sila po ay nagsasabi ng totoo sapagkat kung doon pa lamang po sa komento na kanila pong ipa file, which is the certificate of candidacy, ay hindi na po sila magiging totoo, how much more pa kung mabigyan ito ng pagkakataon na sila ay manilbihan sa atin pong mga lugar,” he said.
Bongalon said the Guo case has repercussions on national security because there are allegedly Chinese individuals who want to enter or penetrate even governance structures in the Philippines. He also questioned how Guo was able to obtain a birth certificate 17 years after she was born.
“So late registration po ‘yung nangyari. And this concerns about the citizenship of this particular individual, lalong-lalo na we are talking about a public official, and under our Constitution, those who want to serve our country and to join the electoral process as candidates for a local position, they should be Filipino citizens. Nakaka-alarma po ito sapagkat kung dito nga po may proseso ng naturalization sa Kongreso. Binibigyan po ng House of Representatives or the Congress itself yung mga naga-apply na gusto pong maging Filipino citizens,” he said.
Bongalon also supported the creation of an inter-agency body tasked to screen students who are interested to enter the Philippines and have their education here.
“They should undergo a very strict screening process. This is a welcome development because what is at stake here is our national security, and one of the non-negotiables in our country is our national security,” he said.
Ortega said part of the work of the inter-agency body would be to look at trends and make national and international projections. “Bakit may influx ng ganitong number of people dito sa lugar na ito, so dapat part po talaga ng mandate nila yun. Kasi may may global trends po yung ganyan,” he said.
