Republic v. de la Rosa
G.R. No. 104654
G.R. No. 105715
G.R. No. 105735
June 6, 1994
Facts:
History
Frivaldo alleged that because of the precarious political atmosphere in the Philippines during martial law, he was compelled to seek a political asylum in the United States and to eventually renounce his citizenship. He claimed that his petition for naturalization was his only available remedy for his reacquisition of Filipino citizenship, but he was informed that this applied only to Filipino women who married foreigners. Meanwhile, his request for Congressional sponsorship allowing him to reacquire his Philippine citizenship failed to materialize. So he sought the remedy of the Revised Naturalization Law.
Naturalization
On September 20, 1991, Juan Frivaldo filed for naturalization. In an order dated October 7, 1991, the judge set the petition for hearing on March 16, 1992. He further directed the following: (1) publication of the said order of petition in the Official Gazette and a newspaper of general circulation for three consecutive weeks, and (2) the posting of a copy of the order and the petition in a conspicuous place in the Office of the Clerk of Court of the RTC in Manila.
His petition for naturalization lacks several allegations required by Sections 2 and 6 of the Revised Naturalization Law. This includes the following:
1. That the petitioner is of good moral character
2. That he has resided continuously in the Philippines for at least 10 years
3. That he is able to speak and write English and any of the principal dialects
4. That he will reside continuously in the Philippines from the date of the filing of the petition until his admission to Philippine citizenship
5. That he has filed a declaration of intention or id he is excused from said filing, the justification thereof
On January 14, 1992, Frivaldo filed a Motion to Set Hearing Ahead of Schedule, where he manifested his intention to run for public office in the May 1992 elections. The motion was granted, and the hearing proceeded on February 21, 1992. Six days after the hearing, the judge rendered the decision that stated Frivaldo has been readmitted as a citizen of the Philippines by naturalization, vesting upon him all rights and privileges of a natural-born Filipino citizen.
Petitions
On March 16, Quiterio Hermo alleged that the proceedings were tainted with jurisdictional defects. On May 22, 1992, Frivaldo was proclaimed as the winner. Raul Lee also filed a petition to seek for the annulment of the proclamation of Frivaldo as Governor-elect of Sorsogon. He contended that Frivaldo was still an American citizen in 1987 when he registered as voter.
Issue:
Can Frivaldo a citizen of the Philippines at the time of the elections?
Ruling:
No. Frivaldo, opting to reacquire Philippine citizenship thru naturalization under the Revised Naturalization Law, is duty bound to follow the procedure prescribed by the said law. It is not for applicant to decide for himself and to select the requirements which he believes, even sincerely, are applicable to his case and discard those which he believes are inconvenient or merely of nuisance value.
Frivaldo failed to comply with the requirements of CA 473 (Revised Naturalization Law) because of the following:
· He did not comply with Section 9 which provides that both the petition for naturalization and the order setting it for hearing must be published once a week for three consecutive weeks in the Official Gazette and a newspaper of general circulation. Compliance therewith is jurisdictional.
· Frivaldo’s petition for naturalization lacked the allegations required by Sections 2 and 6 of CA 473. This absence is fatal to the petition.
· The petition is also not supported by the affidavit of at least two credible persons who vouched for the good moral character of Frivaldo as required by Section 7 of CA 473.
· He also did not attach a copy of his certificate of arrival to the petition as required by Section 7 of CA 473.
In terms of the proceedings of the trial court, the following irregularities were found:
· The hearing of the petition was set ahead of the scheduled date of hearing, without a publication of the order advancing the date of hearing and the petition itself
· The petition was heard within six months from the last publication of the petition
· Frivaldo was allowed to take his oath of allegiance before the finality of the judgment
· Frivaldo took his oath of allegiance without the two-year waiting period
A decision in a petition for naturalization becomes final only after 30 days from its promulgation and, insofar as the Solicitor General is concerned, that period is counted from the date of his receipt of the copy of the decision.
The Court ruled that Frivaldo is NOT a Filipino citizen and therefore DISQUALIFIED from continuing to serve as governor of the Province of Sorsogon.
It's a Ping Thing 