Philippine NICA director says former mayor Alice Guo may be Chinese agent

Guo was accused of using her position to influence public opinion.

The Philippines.- National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) deputy director Francisco Acedillo has told the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations, and Gender Equality that Alice Guo, the suspended mayor of Bamban, Tarlac, might be an “agent of influence.”

Acedillo told the panel during the last public hearing on illegal activities linked to offshore gaming operators that Guo fits the classification due to her ability to leverage her status or position to influence public opinion or decision-making “to produce results beneficial to the country whose services they benefit from.”

“Within the historical context, given that these activities have been common, especially during the Cold War, the activities and the facts that have come to light so far in this committee and in other committees, especially in the House, point to the fact that she is an agent. And even in discussions within the intelligence community, there is consensus that indeed she is an agent of influence,” he stated.

An agent of influence differs from a foreign intelligence agent, who would typically be trained, employed, and overseen by an intelligence organisation. Guo was arrested in Tangerang City, Jakarta, in September after a search. She had left the Philippines on July 17. Senate inquiries uncovered bank dealings involving companies owned by Guo totalling hundreds of millions of pesos, which facilitated the establishment of an offshore gaming operator in Bamban.

See also: No politicians or police helped Alice Guo leave the Philippines, senator says

Philippine senator proposes increase in police budget to combat offshore gaming

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has proposed the Philippine National Police (PNP) be granted more funding for intelligence work to help it tackle offshore gaming operators. He said the PNP’s intelligence fund had decreased from PHP1.356bn (US$23.2m) in 2023 to PHP906.025m (US$15.5m) this year. According to the National Expenditure Program (NEP), funding for 2025 was to be PHP806.025m.

Gatchalian said: “The PNP needs funds to gather intelligence, particularly in the fight against offshore gaming operators. This is the time to support the PNP in gathering more intelligence.”

He added: “Given the President’s directive to terminate all offshore gaming operations in the country by the end of the year, law enforcement agencies such as the PNP need to double down on their efforts to flush out all offshore gaming operators, particularly those that are involved in illegal activities such as kidnap-for-ransom, human trafficking, and online scamming.”

Guo was accused of using her position to influence public opinion. The Philippines.- National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) deputy director Francisco Acedillo has told the Senate Committee on Women, Children,…