G.R. No. 135083 – 367 Phil. 132 – Political Law – Constitutional Law – General Principles – Elements of a State – People; Citizenship – Dual citizenship per se is not a ground for disqualification of candidates but dual allegiance is
In 1998, Eduardo Manzano (the actor popularly known as Edu Manzano) ran for the position of vice mayor in Makati City. Ernesto Mercado was a rival candidate. A petition for the cancellation of Manzano’s certificate of candidacy (COC) was filed as it was alleged that Manzano was a dual citizen. Manzano was born to Filipino parents but he was born in California. This situation makes him a dual citizen under the jus sanguinis and jus soli principles.
The petition for cancellation of Manzano’s COC was anchored on Section 40 (d) of the Local Government Code (R.A. No. 7160) which states that dual citizens are disqualified from running for any elective local position.
ISSUE: Whether or not being a dual citizen automatically disqualifies a candidate from running for an elective position.
HELD: No. Sec. 40 (d) of the LGC must be understood in the context of dual allegiance as deliberated upon by the framers of the Constitution and during the deliberations of the Senators when the LGC was being crafted.
As the records show, the framers of the Constitution had no issue with dual citizenship per se but with Philippine citizens who hold allegiance to other countries. What was sought to be dealt with was dual allegiance hence the constitutional provision: “Dual allegiance of citizens is inimical to the national interest and shall be dealt with by law.”
Dual citizenship is just a reality imposed on individuals because they have no control of the laws on citizenship of other countries. A child of a Filipino mother is a Philippine citizen. But whether or not he or she is considered a citizen of another country is something completely beyond his or her control.
For the framers of the LGC, a dual citizen is only disqualified from elective office if he or she exercises acts that will prove that he or she also acknowledges other citizenships.
Are dual citizens required to elect Philippine citizenship upon reaching the age of majority?
No. No law requires them to.
Nevertheless, though not required to make an election of citizenship, the Supreme Court, in this case, emphasized that by filing his COC, Manzano has effectively renounced his dual citizenship for the reason that in the COC, Manzano declared that he is a Filipino citizen; that he is not a permanent resident or immigrant of another country; that he will defend and support the Constitution of the Philippines and bear true faith and allegiance thereto and that he does so without mental reservation, Manzano has, as far as the laws of this country are concerned, effectively repudiated his American citizenship and anything which he may have said before as a dual citizen. Further, his oath of allegiance to the Philippines, when considered with the fact that he has spent his youth and adulthood, received his education, practiced his profession as an artist, and taken part in past elections in this country, leaves no doubt of his election of Philippine citizenship.
