Hontiveros gives BI 15 days to explain Guo siblings' exit

Senator Risa Hontiveros gave the Bureau of Immigration (BI) 15 days to explain how former Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo and her siblings left the country last year.

BI Intelligence Chief Fortunato Manahan, Jr. admitted the agency has no knowledge of how they went past Philippine borders undetected.

The BI sent letters to their Asian counterpart bureaus but has not received any official written replies, though informal channels suggest no information on the Guos' arrival and departure.

The National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) confirmed that the most probable mode of exit was via backdoor in the southernmost part of the country, possibly through Tawi-Tawi province.

NICA Director Ferlu Silvio stated that Sheila Guo entered Kota Kinabalu, and the siblings likely proceeded to Kuala Lumpur International Airport, then Singapore Changi Airport, and finally took a ferry to Batam, Indonesia.

Hontiveros expressed regret that the question remains unanswered four months after the initial inquiry and also asked for updates on the BI's internal investigation into officials and personnel who may have helped Guo escape.