MANILA, Philippines — Former presidential economic advisor Michael Yang may have ties to Chinese intelligence operations in the Philippines, Sen. Risa Hontiveros said on Tuesday, November 26.
Yang, who used to stand right next to former president Rodrigo Duterte, has been tagged in a number of criminal activities in the Philippines, including those in Philippine Offshore Gaming Operations (POGOs).
Related Stories
During the hearing, Hontiveros flashed a photo of Michael Yang with She Zhijiang — the man who claimed to be a Chinese spy discarded by his home country. She is also the person who tagged former Bamban Mayor Alice Guo as a fellow Chinese spy.
“Michael Yang is a key actor in Chinese intelligence operations here. Michael Yang that i s involved in Pharmally, and if the reports are accurate, as well as drug operations. Michael Yang that was the economic adviser of the former president,” Hontiveros said.
“Ginatasan na tayo, pinagtaksilan pa,” she added. (We were milked, and we were betrayed.)
Yang’s name has continuously popped up in both the House of Representatives and the Senate hearings. Yang was tagged in the Senate’s probe into the Pharmally scandal, where anomalous government procurement purchases were flagged and probed.
A matrix from the House of Representatives’ POGO probe alleges that Michael is the central figure in a web of criminal activities that involved POGOs, illegal drug trade, trafficking and more.
Hontiveros’ team found that She was first recorded in the Philippines on December 10, 2011.
She was previously subject to a 2014 court order in China for establishing private lottery platforms in the Philippines. This led Hontiveros to believe that the 2014 case is a result of what She did in the Philippines.
She owned the Chong Hua General Enterprises Corporation, which saw the deportation of 154 people after it was raided in 2015.
In 2016, She was allegedly recruited by a certain Ma Dong Li. Li and She helped build the Yatai New City Project or the Shwe Kokko in Myanmar.
“Noong 2017, despite the 2014 case involving activities in the Philippines and completely oblivious to his espionage activities here, Mr. She was given a 9G visa by the Bureau on Immigration,” Hontiveros said.