Images of the Senate detention facility prepared for suspended Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Guo Hua Ping (also known as Alice Guo) and her family became the subject of meme content as Filipinos joke about bed spacing and dormitory needs.
News outlets on Tuesday posted videos and pictures of the facility where Guo, her suspected mother Wen Yi Lin, and female sibling would be staying if the Senate sergeant-at-arms succeeds in serving its arrest order on her and her companions.
Male resource persons will be detained in a separate room.
Meanwhile, Guo’s detention facility is air conditioned and has three double-deck beds with pillows, kitchen sinks, a restroom and a water dispenser.
Detainees will be provided food thrice a day, although they can bring their own food. They can also bring their own bedding as well.
They are likewise allowed to go outside for a few minutes in the morning for sunlight. A medical team will also be ready for their health needs.
Visiting hours will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Current guidelines do not allow detainees to use gadgets, but Senate President Chiz Escudero said he has “ordered a review” as the rule “was already old and may no longer be applicable,” adding that detention is not equivalent to imprisonment.
“This is not a jail. This is a detention [facility]. If this is a jail, then it will have railings,” Retired Lt. Gen. Roberto Ancan of the Senate Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms said.
The detention facility was formerly a daycare center. It was converted in the event that the upper chamber needed to detain more people.
Guo and her family will be the first to use it following the conversion if they surface.
The detention facility is beside the Philippine National Police’s Senate Security Unit.
Pictures and videos of the site have gone viral on social media, with some Filipinos poking fun at the tour.
“Kaaalis [lang] po ng Tenants, paunahan na lang. Pwede sa maarte,” a Facebook user said, joking that it is a “room for rent at Greenwoods Executive Village.”
“3500 pesos, 1 month DP [downpayment], 3 months advance, must bring NBI clearance,” the user added.
“Strictly for ladies only, pets allowed, no kids allowed. Preferably working at morning. No medium to loud noises, 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Bawal bisita, pwede kamag-anak. Bawal mag-inuman. Bawal mag-yosi. Bawal magluto sa loob, pwede heater (may karinderia kami, 10 minutes walk galing sa paupahan, pwede naman mag-tricycle). Libre tubig pero bawal maglaba (may laundry shop kami). Libre na kuryente, 1 outlet only (may piso wifi kami). Fine for using extension is 1,000 pesos,” the user said.
An online user on the X (formerly Twitter) platform also posted the following captions for fun:
LF [Looking For]: 8 new roomies 878 Vista Recto, España
– Near UST, FEU, CEU, UE etc.
– Fully furnished
₱6k /month, excluding electric and water bill
LF: 8 new roomies
878 Vista Recto, España– Near UST, FEU, CEU, UE etc.
– Fully furnished
– ₱6k /month, excluding electric and water bill https://t.co/eXNGDSOQlZ— nini ♡ uni ˘͈ᵕ˘͈ (@delikaite) July 16, 2024
Another user joked about looking for “one female roommate.” The user wrote:
RUSH
LF: 1 FEMALE ROOMMATE
Unit is already reserved! See unit below
LOCATION:
5 min walk from UST Dapitan Gate 10 & 11
FEES AND TERMS:
* ₱ 3,000 each for 6 pax
* ₱ 10,000 reservation fee (deductible but non-refundable, will be divided into 6)
Another Pinoy joked about looking for a “female bedspacer,” adding it is for “long-term tenants.”
The user also referenced Guo during the Senate hearings with her constant use of phrases like “Your Honor, hindi ko na po maalala,” in the caption:
Six (6) pax sa room
1 slot availabe
Any time move in
5500 upper
5000 lower
– [x] WiFI 150mbps and 200mbps
– [x] Shared CR
– [x] Libre gisa sa senado
– [x] Pwede sa maarte
– [x] Pwede sa makakalimutin
– [x] Di ko na maalala yung iba
The detainees
The Senate on July 13 issued an arrest order against Guo for contempt for her failure to attend two hearings of the Senate Committee on Women, Children, Family Relations and Gender Equality.
The Senate is investigating her alleged involvement with the illegal Philippine Overseas Gaming Operators (POGO) hub raided in her town.
It is also looking at her background amid her inconsistent testimonies and dubious documents about her Filipino citizenship.
Guo said that she was not medically fit to attend the Senate hearings, adding that she was subjected to stress and trauma in the previous ones.
Apart from Guo and her former accountant Nancy Gamo, the Senate has issued similar arrest orders to her father Jian Zhong Guo, her siblings Sheila, Wesley and Siemen Guo, and graft convict Dennis Cunanan who supposedly represented the Bamban POGO.
Among them, Gamo was the only one who has been arrested so far. She is staying in a different facility from Guo.
Guo’s legal counsel, Stephen David, said that his client is still in the country and that he is convincing her to surrender to the authorities.
