Suspended Mayor Guo has five days to respond to misrepresentation allegations

Suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo has five days to respond to allegations that she committed misrepresentation when filing her Certificate of Candidacy for the mayoralty race in 2021.

Commission on Elections Chairman George Erwin Garcia stated that this period will begin once they receive findings from fingerprint analysis conducted by Comelec experts and forwarded by the National Bureau of Investigation, and Guo will be required to appear before the Comelec once it files an election case against her.

The report submitted by the Comelec Law Department will be reviewed by the Commission en Banc to determine if further action is warranted or dismissed based on the evidence, with Garcia emphasizing that any decision made by the Comelec will only come after providing due process, including hearing from both sides involved in the case.

Comelec is investigating Guo in relation to her 2021-2022 candidacy and plans to visit the local registrar of Bamban, Tarlac, where she processed her certificate of candidacy (COC) in 2021.

Misrepresentation during the filing of a Certificate of Candidacy is considered a criminal offense under Section 74 of the Omnibus Election Code and requires preliminary investigation.