During a Senate hearing, a lawyer acknowledged that Alice Guo, the dismissed mayor of Bamban, did not personally swear before him her counter-affidavit related to a human trafficking complaint filed by the Department of Justice. The admission came from Atty. Elmer Galicia during a session of the Senate subcommittee on justice and human rights, after Senator Risa Hontiveros highlighted irregularities in the notarization process.
Hontiveros questioned Galicia for notarizing Guo's counter-affidavit on August 14, even though Guo was already outside the country by then. She revealed that Guo had left the Philippines in July, making it impossible for her to have sworn the document in person at Galicia's office in San Jose Del Monte, Bulacan.
Galicia explained that an individual named Allan, a member of his religious organization whose last name he did not know, facilitated the notarization. Allan approached Galicia, stating that "Mayor wants something to be notarized." Galicia said that he was presented with an identification card, specifically a driver's license, but admitted he could not confirm if it was genuinely Alice Guo.
"There may have been a lapse on my part in identifying whether it was truly Alice Guo," Galicia said, acknowledging his uncertainty about the identity of the person who appeared before him.
Galicia added that he did not request the person, who identified themselves as "Alice," to leave her car and come inside his office. Instead, Allan handed over the documents, and after they were notarized, he returned them.
Senator Hontiveros, visibly taken aback by this revelation, reprimanded Galicia, emphasizing that even senators are required to personally swear before a notary for any official documents. Senator Joel Villanueva also pointed out that the document indicated it was "subscribed and sworn" before Galicia, which contradicted Galicia's admission that Guo did not swear before him.
Both Hontiveros and Senator Sherwin Gatchalian noted that Galicia had failed to ask Guo to sign the notarial book, a standard requirement for notarized documents. Galicia defended his actions by saying he was unaware of any such requirement.
Additionally, Galicia stated he was not following the congressional hearings and was unaware of any arrest order against Guo issued by the Senate. Hontiveros requested Galicia provide Allan's last name and details of their religious organization. Galicia initially declined to disclose his organization's name but later denied it was the Kingdom of Jesus Christ, led by Pastor Apollo Quiboloy.
Senator Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa also questioned Galicia about his religious affiliation, but Senator Villanueva clarified that Galicia's religion had no bearing on the legal proceedings.
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