Hontiveros questions Joseph Sy's absence at Senate hearing - GMA Network
Senator Risa Hontiveros on Friday questioned businessman Joseph Sy's absence from a Senate hearing on Thursday after he reportedly went to the emergency room of a hospital due to health concerns.
Interviewed on GMA News' Unang Balita, Hontiveros said Sy had allegedly attended a party a couple of weeks earlier to celebrate his release on bail.
"Kung kaya naman pala niya mag-party, kaya naman niya sigurong dumalo muli kahit minsan pa sa Senado para humarap sa aming komite," the senator said.
(If he can party, he can probably come to the Senate at least once more to appear before our committee.)
Despite Sy’s absence, Hontiveros said several government agencies that attended the hearing committed to reviewing their databases and strengthening coordination to prevent foreigners from exploiting Philippine identity documents and government systems.
These include the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Office of the Solicitor General (OSG), Bureau of Immigration (BI), and Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
Hontiveros said the agencies would conduct internal audits and improve information-sharing to address the alleged use of fraudulent Philippine birth certificates and passports by foreign nationals.
She said some foreigners had allegedly abused the late registration of birth certificates to acquire Filipino identities and engage in businesses with regulations on foreign ownership, including mining.
“Si Joseph Sy naging pangulo ng isang malaking Philippine mining company. Nailuwas niya ang ating mga likas na yaman at doon siya yumaman,” she said.
(Joseph Sy became the president of a large Philippine mining company. He exported our natural resources and that's where he got rich.)
During Thursday's hearing, PSA said it found evidence showing that the embattled businessman procured fake documents during his birth registration process.
Suspected of being a Chinese national posing as a Filipino, Sy was arrested by Philippine authorities in 2025 when he arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport from Hong Kong.
The Supreme Court (SC) First Division ordered last month the release of Sy, ruling in favor of his petition for habeas corpus.
The Bureau of Immigration (BI) said it respected the SC’s resolution on the petition, but clarified that the Court did not settle the matter of Sy’s nationality.
Meanwhile, Hontiveros also warned about the continued operations of illegal POGOs, which she described as having transformed into "guerrilla POGOs" following the passage of the Anti-POGO Act.
She said these groups may also be involved in scam operations and troll farms spreading disinformation, posing a broader threat to national security and Philippine democracy. —AOL, GMA News
