Sen.

Grace Poe: I renounced US citizenship before becoming MTRCB chief

Published May 18, 2015 9:01pm
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/489298/news/nation/sen-grace-poe-i-renounced-uscitizenship-before-becoming-mtrcb-chief#sthash.E1sd4Wcf.dpuf
Senator Grace Poe said on Monday that she was a dual citizen and she had renounced her United States
citizenship even before she entered government service and become chairperson of the Movie and Television
Review and Classification Board (MTRCB).
Akoy naging dual citizen noon, but I had to give it up. Kinailangan kong isuko iyan. Ang kondisyon niyan (dual
citizenship), kapag ikaw ay maninilbihan sa gobyerno, sa anumang posisyon, kailangan ay isuko mo kung
anuman ang naging isa pang citizenship mo, Poe said.
Poe spoke about her citizenship after a local daily broadsheet published a report which said the senator, daughter
of the late Philippine movie icon Fernando Poe Jr., has a US passport and Philippine passport.
The same newspaper report said Senator Poe "is being hounded by questions on her citizenship" but the article
did not substantiate its characterization of the issue in relation to the senator.
Hindi ako maglalakas-loob na tumanggap ng posisyon sa gobyerno, sa MTRCB (Movie Television Review and
Classification Board) pa lang, kung hindi ako kwalipikado at hindi ako Pilipino, she added.
Poe was MTRCB chair from 2010 to 2012.
Senator Poe said she already submitted her travel documents to authorities and the public can scrutinize it.
Malinaw po sa mga dokumento, hindi po ito tagong yaman. Ito po ay mga dokumentong naisumite ko na sa mga
ahensya na pwede ninyong busisiin, she said.
She explained that she became a dual citizen when she resided in America but renounced it when she returned to
the country after her father died in 2004.
To revert back to Filipino citizenship, ire-renounce mo lang 'yung US citizenship mo. 'Yun lang ang ginawa ko.
'Yun kasi ay condition ng Dual Citizenship Law. Hindi iyon to-reacquire Philippine citizenship kasi it reverts back to
that automatically, she said.
Poe also said that she is a natural-born Filipino and she never abandoned it.
Hindi po totoo iyon sapagkat ang dual citizenship law na sinulat mismo nina Sen. (Franklin) Drilon at ng iba pa
nating kasama ditokung ano man ang iyong citizenship prior to your dual citizenship status, 'pag na-renounce
mo iyon, you will revert back to your original statuswhich is natural-born, she said.
Poe earlier expressed disappointment that some of her rivals are now questioning her citizenship just because her
name is being floated as one of probable contenders in the 2016 presidential polls. The senator has yet to make a
decision on whether she will run or not.
Its sad that others have to resort to the same issue on citizenship the way that they did with FPJ (her late
adoptive father, actor and one-time presidential candidate Fernando Poe Jr.). Perhaps others use the citizenship
issue when they have no other way to attack a possible opponent, Poe earlier told GMA News Online.
ELR/KG, GMA News

10-year residency requirement disqualifies Grace Poe in

2016 UNA
Published June 2, 2015 4:36pm
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/497106/news/nation/10-year-residency-requirementdisqualifies-grace-poe-in-2016-una#sthash.MIHrK07w.dpuf
Sen. Grace Poe is not qualified to run for President or for Vice President in the 2016 elections because she's six
months short of the residency requirement under the 1987 Constitution, an opposition leader said on Tuesday.
UNA interim president and Navotas City Rep. Toby Tiangco said Article VII, Section 2 of the Constitution clearly
states that "no person may be elected President unless he is a natural-born citizen of the Philippines, a registered
voter, able to read and write, at least forty years of age on the day of the election, and a resident of the Philippines
for at least ten years immediately preceding such election."
The same qualifications are also required from those who want to run for Vice President, as stated in Section 3 of
the same Article.
Tiangco then presented a photocopy of Poe's certificate of candidacy during the 2013 senatorial elections, which
showed that the then-senatorial aspirant had been a resident of the Philippines for six years and six months prior
to the midterm polls.
During the 2013 polls, Poe was a guest senatorial candidate of the ruling Liberal Party.
Tiangco said that even if Poe's residency in the Philippines until the May 2016 elections were to be included, she
will still be six months short of the Constitutional requirement of a 10-year residency period.
The next presidential elections will be held on May 9, 2016.
The UNA stalwart said he revealed the information about Poe because of the senator's recent statements about

putting a premium on honesty in choosing her potential partner should she run for higher office.
"Ang nadinig kong buong statement ay napakahalaga kay Senator Grace ang honesty. Ang tanong ko lang: Kung
napakahalaga sa kanyang ng salitang 'honesty,' why isn't she honest enough to tell us she's not qualified to run
for 2016? 'Yan ba ang pagiging tapat?" he asked.
Tiangco vouched for the COCs authenticity, which he said was also available on the Commission on Elections
website.
Kung peke ito, barilin niyo ako [sa kinauupuan ko], he said.
On Monday, Poe said she never opened her door to be Vice President Jejomar Binay's running mate in the 2016
elections because honesty and quality of service are important to her. She had also asked Binay to appear before
the Senate probe on the corruption allegations hurled against him.
Sought for comment, Poe's camp said the senator returned to the country in late 2004 following the death of her
father, actor and then opposition standard-bearer Fernando Poe Jr.
"The fact remains that Grace Poe and her whole family permanently resided in the country soon after FPJ died in
December 2004 to give company to the grieving widow Susan Roces," said lawyer Nelson Victorino, Poe's chief of
staff.
Poe was never considered
Tiangco said UNA had long been aware of Poes supposed failure to meet the residency requirement for running
for the two highest offices in the land but Binay cautioned the UNA leadership against releasing the information
because of his friendship with the senator.
The Vice President is very polite. Nung sinabi ko ito (issue of residency) sa kanya, sabi niya, pabayaan mo nang
manggaling sa iba yan, Tiangco said.
However, the lawmaker said he took it upon himself to divulge the information because of Poes statement about
honesty.
Asked if UNA would have released the information on Poes residency had she chosen to become Binays running
mate, Tiangco said she was never considered by the party in the first place.
Alam na namin na hindi siya pwede. Noong tinatanong kung kino-consider siya, sumagot si Vice President na
oo because he wanted to be polite. Kaibigan niya eh, Tiangco said.
While Tiangco was non-committal on whether UNA would question Poes candidacy before the Supreme Court if
she decides to run for higher office, the opposition leader said he would personally file a case against her if she
does.
If Im stopped by my party, I would have to decide whether I would follow or Ill just leave the party, Tiangco said.
Residency guidelines, according to the SC
The Supreme Court said, in a decision promulgated on April 24, 2012, that "(t)here is no hard and fast rule to
determine a candidates compliance with residency requirement since the question of residence is a question of
intention. Still, jurisprudence has laid down the following guidelines: (a) every person has a domicile or residence
somewhere; (b) where once established, that domicile remains until he acquires a new one; and (c) a person can
have but one domicile at a time.
In that case, the high court overturned the Comelec resolution disqualifying petitioner Rommel Jalosjos from the
governorship of Zamboanga Sibugay. "Jalosjos presented the affidavits of next-door neighbors, attesting to his
physical presence at his residence in Ipil. These adjoining neighbors are no doubt more credible since they have a
better chance of noting his presence or absence than his other neighbors, whose affidavits Erasmo presented,
who just sporadically passed by the subject residence," the high court noted.
The SC also said, "it is not disputed that Jalosjos bought a residential lot in the same village where he lived and a
fish pond in San Isidro, Naga, Zamboanga Sibugay. He showed correspondences with political leaders, including
local and national party-mates, from where he lived. Moreover, Jalosjos is a registered voter of Ipil by final
judgment of the Regional Trial Court of Zamboanga Sibugay."
Voter registration info
According to the Commission on Elections' Precinct Finder, Senator Poe registered as a voter on August 31, 2006
at the Sta. Lucia Elementary School in San Juan. She is a voter at Precinct 0349A.
The senator attended her father's
funeral
on
December
22,
2004. Fernando Poe Jr. suffered
a stroke and died on December
14, 2004.
GMA News Online is currently
ascertaining when Senator Poe
started residing in the country
either in San Juan, where she is a
registered voter, or at the address
stated in her certificate of
candicacy for senator which is in
Corinthian Hill, Barangay Ugong
Norte, Quezon City.

RSJ/NB/ELR, GMA News

Tiangco: Grace Poe cant

use own interpretation of law to meet residency requirement
Published June 3, 2015 6:24pm
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/497970/news/nation/tiangco-grace-poe-can-t-use-owninterpretation-of-law-to-meet-residency-requirement#sthash.3sJgcdTi.dpuf
Senator Grace Poe cannot cite her personal interpretation of the law to cover up for her failure to meet the 10year residency requirement for presidential and vice presidential candidates, an opposition leader said
Wednesday.
United Nationalist Alliance (UNA) interim president and Navotas City Rep. Toby Tiangco said it is clear in the
Constitution that the date of reference for determining the length of a candidates residency is based on election
day, which was May 13 for the 2013 midterm polls.
Di pwedeng maging dahilan iyong hindi tama ang appreciation dito sa bagay na ito dahil it refers to the
Constitutional requirement, and the Constitutional requirement refers to election day, he said.
Earlier in the day, Poe maintained she is qualified to run for higher office next year because she has been residing
in the Philippines since 2005.
However, she said she decided to err on the side of prudence and wrote down six years and six months as her
period of residency on her certificate of candidacy in the 2013 polls because it was only in 2006 that she was able
to sell their familys house in the United States.
Inilagay ko po iyon dahil noong 2006 lang naibenta ang bahay namin sa Amerika, April 2006, which can be
proven. So sabi ko at that time baka naman iyon ang ibig nilang sabihin, she said.
Tiangco later said in a radio interview Poe could be held liable for perjury if her declaration in her COC was not
accurate as the certificate was a sworn document.
Tiangco earlier said Poe is not qualified to run for president or for vice president in the 2016 elections because
she's six months short of the 10-year residency requirement under the 1987 Constitution.
The opposition leader claimed Poe wouldnt have a problem establishing her period of residency had she not
allegedly renounced her Filipino citizenship to acquire a United States passport.
Siya ho ay naging US citizen. Bago ka maging US citizen, kailangang i-renounce muna ang iyong pagiging
Pilipino kaya na-kwestyon at naputol yung kanyang residency sa Pilipinas. Kung tumira siya sa Amerika, nag-aral
siya doon a di siya naging American citizen, walang magiging problema sa kanyang residency requirement. Kaya
nagkaroon ng problema doon aydahil may panahon na tinalikuran niya ang pagiging Pilipino na requirement para
ka maging American citizen, Tiangco said.
Poe had admitted to previously being a dual Filipino and American citizen, but said she renounced her American
passport before she was appointed as the chairperson of the Movie and Television Review and Classification
Board in 2010.

Animus revertendi
Contrary to Tiangcos view, House Minority Floor Leader Ronaldo Zamora said a persons residency could not be
cut short just because he or she chooses to live elsewhere for a long time.
Residency is not established by physical presence. The moment you have established residency through living in
the Philippines, [it] means domicile. You do not lose simply because you go to the United States as in the case of
Sen. Poe. You don't even lose it even if you stay for an extended number of years and you don't lose it simply
because you adopt another citizenship, said Zamora, the topnotcher in the 1969 bar examinations.
Should Poes residency is questioned before the Supreme Court, he said what will prevail is the doctrine of
animus revertendi or "intent to return."
Animus revertendi means the intention to return to, live and possibly die in the Philippines. In short, the
permanency that you should consider is the permanency not of physical presence but of permanency of the
intention, he said.
But Tiangco, who is not a lawyer, said using the aforementioned legal doctrine will only make Poes predicament
worse since she only renounced her US citizenship five years ago.
Kasi ang [doctrine ng] animus revertendi means you intend to return to that place. Noong panahon na siyay
American citizen, paano niya sasabihing she intends to return to the Philippines or she intends to stay here?
Animus revertendi will only apply mula sa panahong ni-renounce niya ang kanyang US citizenship, he said.
Burden of proof
On the question of Poes citizenship, Zamora said that as a rule of thumb, a foundling is considered a citizen of
the country she was found in.
Doesn't it make sense that if you agree, that if foundling can not be stateless then she has to be a citizen of a
specific country? Then what specific country is that? Malinaw na malinaw na Pilipinas. Because kung hindi siya
pinanganak dito, papaano siya dumating dito? If you are born a natural citizen, according to Philippine law, you
remain a natural born citizen, he said.
In jest, Zamora added that hes aware of Poes residency because she resides in San Juan, which he represents.
Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Carlos Isagani Zarate said that while there is no question about Poes citizenship,
some critics might question the nationality of her true parents. The senator has been open that she was an
adopted child of celebrity couple Fernando Poe Jr. and Susan Roces.
However, he and Zamora agreed that burden of proof that Poe isnt a Filipino citizen will rest on the camp which
would raise the issue before the Supreme Court.
The burden of proof is upon the persons who say hindi siya natural born citizen of the PhilippinesIt is not for
Senator Poe to establish that, Zamora said. KBK/JJ, GMA News

Grace Poe inherited FPJs citizenship election lawyer

Published June 4, 2015 8:56pm
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/498614/news/nation/grace-poe-inherited-fpj-s-citizenshipelection-lawyer#sthash.E3fMMwe9.dpuf
Being an adopted daughter, Senator Grace Poe inherited the citizenship of her adoptive father, the late actor
Fernando Poe, Jr., election lawyer Romulo Macalintal said in a "24 Oras" report Thursday.
Macalintal argued that Poe, born under the 1935 Constitution, is considered a citizen of the Philippines based on
Article IV, Section 1, which classifies citizens as "those whose fathers are citizens of the Philippines."
"Wala naman sinabing hindi maituturing na ama ang isang adoptive father," Macalintal said.
Poe was found abandoned as an infant at the Jaro Cathedral in Iloilo almost 50 years ago. She was adopted by
FPJ and his wife, actress Susan Roces.
FPJ himself faced a similar issue at the height of the 2004 presidential elections. The Supreme Court ruled
against the petitioners who argued that the actor is not a natural-born Filipino citizen because he was an
illegitimate child.
If Senator Poe decides to run as president in the 2016 elections and wins, she will be the first foundling to become
chief executive, the report said.
Former University of the Philippines (UP) law dean Pacifico Agabin however questioned if the identity of Poe's
biological parents are unknown to her or it was just undocumented.

Agabin said it was important for Poe to find her biological parents to settle the issue of citizenship raised against
her.
Former Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman Sixto Brillantes, FPJ's election lawyer, meanwhile argued
that citizenship is based on the principle of jus sanguinis (Latin: right of blood) wherein one can be considered a
natural-born Filipino if one of his or her parents is Filipino.
Brillantes also said that whoever dares to use the citizenship issue against Poe in time for the 2016 elections has
the burden of proof.
Poe earlier slammed critics for discriminating her as a foundling.
Ibig bang sabihin nila na ang isang bata na pinulot ay hindi na pwedeng mangarap na manilbihan sa isang
mataas na posisyun at walang karapatan ng parehong oportunidad sa iba? she said. Kathrina Charmaine
Alvarez/KBK, GMA News

Sen. Grace Poe lacks residency requirement Raymond

Fortun
Published June 7, 2015 3:06pm
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/499926/news/nation/sen-grace-poe-lacks-residencyrequirement-raymond-fortun#sthash.cocitiIa.dpuf

The 10-year residency rule for candidates seeking the highest

offices in the land should be strictly followed because the
drafters of 1987 Philippine Constitution had a specific reason
for such a requirement.
High-profile lawyer Raymond Fortun made this reminder over
the weekend, even as he urged Senator Grace Poe to
concede as she would surely fail to meet the residency rule
based on the certificate of candidacy she filed when she ran for
senator in 2013.
"There is a reason why the Constitution requires a 10-year
residency for a presidential candidate at the least, it is to
guarantee that a candidate knows what ills this country, and
has a love for it enough to desire to be a catalyst for change,
said Fortun in a Facebook post that has already been liked and
shared 2,500 times as of Sunday morning.
"If you really placed 'six years, six months' as of May 13, 2013,
please show a love for your chosen (?) country by conceding
that point and follow and obey this country's laws. Otherwise,
we cannot expect that you would follow those same laws if you
become president, said Fortun, a litigation expert and former
lawyer of former President Joseph Estrada. Poe, a foundling
legally adopted by movie stars Fernando Poe Jr and Susan
Roces, was born and raised in the Philippines but later moved
to the US to finish her undergraduate studies and eventually
worked there. She only decided to return to the Philippines
after her father died in 2004. She later renounced her US

citizenship so she could be appointed in the Philippines as

chair of the Movie and Television Review and Classification
Board in 2010.
Earlier this week, Navotas Rep. and United Nationalist Alliance
(UNA) interim president Toby Tiangco raised Poes residency
issue, claiming she is prohibited by the Constitution, under
Article VII, Section 2, to seek higher office due to lack of
residency. Residency requirement for candidates running for
president or vice president is 10 years, while that for senator is
two years.
In his FB post, Fortun agreed [with Tiangco]: "Poe is, with all
due respect, not qualified to run for higher office under our
Constitution.
"That you are now trying to wiggle your way out of that
declaration under oath somehow tarnishes you in my eyes
because THE LEAST that I expect from you is HONESTY, he
added.
He said Poe has the burden of proving she has indeed lived in
the Philippines for more than 10 years before the May 2016
polls. "The onus, therefore, would be on Sen. Poe to explain
how she can claim residency different from what she declared
under oath, he said.
Honest mistake?
One of the commenters in Fortuns online post wondered how
the framers of the Constitution came up with 10 years, when it
does not even take that long to know the ills of the country.
Fortun replied: Sir, lame as you may think it is, that is what the
framers of the Constitution decided is the standard qualification
for Pres/VP."
He repeatedly made clear in his post and replies that he was
neither pro-Binay nor anti-Poe, but was merely sticking to the
laws.
"This is not a mudslinging' issue, because the point is
something so basic and fundamental Much as I dont like to
sound like the attacker. There should only be one side the
legal side, he said.
For those defending Poe saying she might have simply
committed a mistake in putting six years and six months on
her COC, Fortun said, that 'honest mistake' tact is clearly an

afterthought.
"I can safely assume that nobody stuck a gun to her temple to
write '6 years 6 months'; meaning, that date is true and correct.
So now pwede na pala gumawa ng maling affidavit and later
say 'oops sorry honest mistake'? That is soooo bad from a
legal standpoint, the lawyer said.
He said Poe either lied then when she filed her COC for
senator in 2012 or is lying now in case she decides to run for
presidency in May next year.
Also, he said that under the law, it is not prohibited to admit
committing an honest mistake. "But (yo)u do that of your own
volition WITHOUT anybody pointing it out to you. You do NOT
change your declarations under oath as it may suit you or if it
will be advantageous to you.
Moreover, he said if Poe would really admit it was an honest
mistake, she should have said so and corrected the wrong
information at the first opportunity and not wait three years to
do so, when critics have already raised the matter.
"So any attempt to correct the 'mistake' now is highly
suspicious at the very least.
He said it was common for people to commit mistakes when
accomplishing documents, like a birth certificate. But it would
be much different to commit a mistake on something as
important as a COC done under oath for an elective post.
"Gosh, you can even expect the candidate to frame that [COC],
right?, he added.
Fortun stressed the importance of ensuring the truthfulness of
documents sworn under oath, saying that in his 27 years of law
practice, sworn statements make or break a case."
That Poe is not a lawyer would also be a lame excuse,"
according to Fortun, who said the lady senator, for sure, had
checked the documents truthfulness first before her oath was
administered.
Fortun also pointed out that the answers found in Poes COC
were type-written. It is very VERY difficult to believe that it was
a mistake, he said.
Binays daughter Makati Rep. Mari-len Abigail Binay on Friday
appealed for an end to the word war between Poe and officials
of the opposition UNA, and said the residency issue should

instead be settled in court.

Fortun echoed Rep. Binays sentiment: This case will definitely
be decided by the courts. That is why this [Facebook] post is
BOTH an appeal to reason and to emotion.
Animus revertendi
Several legal experts have come to the defense of Poe, saying
the doctrine of animus revertendi or ones intention to return
to his or her domicile applies to the Sen. Poe, saying that her
intent to return to the Philippines outweighs actual residency.
They cited the 1995 Supreme Court ruling on former First Lady
Imelda Marcos that allowed her to run for congresswoman of
Leyte despite her long absence in the province. The SC ruled
that Marcos's repeated manifestation of her intention to return
there still makes her a domicile of Leyte.
Fortun and a number of legal experts and former law deans
took the opposing side, insisting that the Imelda case cannot
be applied to Poes case.
He said Imelda, for one, never acquired American citizenship,
unlike Poe, and that the animus revertendi doctrine only
applies when there is a question to ones residency. In Poes
case, the lawmaker herself pegged her residency.
"The core of the issue is one that is of her OWN making her
COC for the 2013 elections, he said.
"The SC ruled in Imelda's favor for reasons totally distinct and
unique to her. Sen. Poe cannot cite that case as precedent,
even as SOME of the grounds may be applicable to her. You
just simply cannot compare Sen. Grace to Imelda, he said.
Former law deans Pacifico Agabin of UP Law and Amado
Valdez of UE Law had also said the Imelda case was not
applicable.
Agabin said it would be a legal fiction to invoke animus
revertendi in Poes case, while Valdez like Fortun stressed
that Marcos never lost her domicile in the Philippines."
Integrated Bar of the Philippines national president Vicente
Joyas, meanwhile, said Poe's intention to return to the
Philippines "Was negated by her acquisition of US
citizenship." LBG, GMA News

NO FILIPINO, NO REGION LEFT BEHIND

Grace Poe running for President in 2016

Published September 16, 2015
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/537153/news/nation/grace-poe-running-for-president-in2016#sthash.AJXukAuq.dpuf

Justice Carpio: Grace Poe is not natural-born, but

naturalized Filipino citizen
Published September 21, 2015 2:25pm
See
more
at:
http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/537714/news/nation/ju
stice-carpio-grace-poe-is-not-natural-born-but-naturalizedfilipino-citizen#sthash.lvPj3rOi.dpuf
Senator Grace Poe can be considered a Filipino under
international customary law but only as a naturalized citizen
and not as natural-born citizen, according to Supreme Court
Associate Justice Antonio Carpio. Carpio said this during
Monday's oral arguments on a petition filed with the Senate
Electoral Tribunal by defeated 2013 senatorial candidate
Rizalito David against Poe, a foundling adopted by celebrity
couple Fernando Poe Jr. and Susan Roces. According to the
petitioner, Poe should be disqualified from the Senate for failing
to meet the requirement under Section 3, Article VI of the 1987
Philippine Constitution that requires a candidate to be a
natural-born citizen. During interpellation, Carpio stressed that
customary international law can be followed so long as it does
not violate provisions of the Constitution.
"We do not follow international customary law because our
Constitution has primacy. Although under international law, we
have a commitment to conform to customary international law
by amending the Constitution," Carpio said.
However, in the absence of a law, an international customary
law can be applied, he added.
"So if right now, there is no law promulgated by Congress that
foundlings can be deemed citizens of the Philippines,
customary international law can supply that gap?" Carpio
asked David's lawyer Manuelito Luna, who answered in the
affirmative.
"If there is a customary international law saying foundlings can
be deemed citizens of the country where they were found, we
apply that under the principle of incorporation. It is deemed as
municipal law," Carpio said.

The senior magistrate, however, quickly added: "But you are

still a naturalized citizen, not natural born. Because if
customary international law says a foundling is natural born, it
will violate our Constitution and we cannot apply it here."
DNA testing
The international customary laws being pertained by the
magistrate were the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,
which states that all human beings, including foundlings, have
a right to nationality; and the UN Convention relating to the
status of Stateless Persons.
"So we have solved the problem counsel? You will agree with
me that Senator Poe [is] at least a citizen of the Philippines,"
Carpio asked Luna, who answered, "Yes."
Carpio, however, added that any decision on citizenship is
never final.
"If tomorrow you happen to find out by DNA matching that your
parent is Filipino, you can still prove that you are natural-born,"
said the magistrate.
Luna told the tribunal that the senator was undergoing DNA
tests to prove her Filipino lineage. The lawyer said the findings
would be available in two weeks.
Rights of foundlings
For her part, Senator Loren Legarda asked about the rights of
foundlings in the Philippines when seeking employment or
owning land properties.
"Are you foreclosing all these seemingly ordinary occupations
and hopes to foundlings?," Legarda asked Luna.
"We are not. That is just the law. There is actually a
discrimination [between a foundling a non-foundling]... but the
discrimination is caused by the Constitution itself, not by
petitioner. it is the result of our laws," the lawyer said.
Luna said it is the Constitution that prescribes candidates
aspiring the highest national positions to be natural-born
citizens, and those seeking local positions to be at least
naturalized citizens. Poe, a foundling from Jaro, Iloilo in 1968,
migrated to the US to pursue a college degree. She eventually
found work and had a family there. In 2010, she renounced her
US citizenship before being appointed as chair of the Movie
and Television Review and Classification Board.
But Luna told the SET members: "She is not natural born so
she cannot re-acquire something she did not possess."

US passport
Meanwhile, Sen. Cynthia Villar asked if Luna was aware
whether Poe had used her US passport after she renounced
her US citizenship in 2010. Luna said that based on the US
Department's State Bureau of Consular Affairs, Poe may have
used her passport in September 2011, the month her passport
expired. Luna said the lawmaker could even have used her US
passport beyond September 2011, but did not elaborate.
Poe on Wednesday declared her intention to run for president
in next year's elections. A day after, she announced that
Senator Francis Escudero would be her running mate. In the
lates Social Weather Stations survey results, Poe remains the
top choice for president. In the survey published late Sunday
night by BusinessWorld, Poe's rating rose to 47 percent in the
poll conducted from September 2 to 5, five points better than
her second quarter result.
Former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas, meanwhile, surged to
second with 39 percent from 21 percent last June. The former
Interior Secretary was anointed by President Benigno Aquino
III as his preferred successor last July 31. Vice President
Jejomar Binay slipped to third with 35 percent, one point higher
than his June result. RSJ/NB, GMA News
Grace Poes residency can still be questionedlegal experts

Published: 09:36 AM September 21st, 2015

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/723888/grace-poes-residency-can-still-be-questioned-legal-experts#ixzz3w9U9v9EQ

Even if the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) dropped the residency issue of Senator Grace Poe, it can
still be raised when she files her certificate of candidacy (COC) for president.
Later on, after Poe files her COC next month, the residency issue against her can once again be
revived, no longer for her senatorial bid but for her presidential bid, said former UP law dean Pacifico
Agabin.
Poe has already proclaimed that she will run for president in next years election.
Article VII, Section 2 of the Philippine Constitution requires a presidential candidate to be a resident of
the Philippines for at least ten years immediately preceding such election.
The SET dropped the issue on residency on a technicality. Under SET rules, a disqualification case on
the issue of residency must be filed within 10 days from the date of proclamation of a candidate.
Former UE law dean Amado Valdez said Even if the SET has dropped the residency issue on the
present case, her presidential bid is still left hanging because of another possible disqualification case
that could be filed against her next month, Valdez added.
The residency must be in the concept of having domicile in the Philippines. She cannot have two
domiciles, one here and another in the US, he said.
It is only when she abandoned her US citizenship that she could be considered a resident in the
Philippines for purposes of the elections, Valdez added.
On Monday, Sept. 21, the SET will conduct oral arguments on the question of Poes citizenship.
Poe, a foundling left at the Jaro Church in Iloilo before being adopted by Fernando Poe and wife Susan
Roces, has repeatedly insisted that she is a Filipino and that she has fulfilled the 10-year residency

requirement when she returned in the Philippines following her fathers death in 2004.
Recently, the Supreme Court disqualified Kauswagan, Lanao del Norte Mayor Rommel C. Arnado for
using his US passport even after reacquiring Filipino citizenship.
But election lawyer Romulo Macalintal believed such circumstance is different from Poes case.
Quoting the high courts ruling, he said the use of US passport does not divest one of the reacquired
Filipino citizenship but merely results to a recantation of the Affidavit of Renunciation which, as stated
above, is one of the twin requirements to hold a public office, whether elective or appointive.
Poes case is not the same as Arnados. From her answer to Davids petition as released to the media,
it appears that Poe used her US passport after she executed her Oath of Allegiance on July 7,
2006. On October 20, 2010 she executed an Affidavit of Renunciation (AR) of her US citizenship when
she was appointed as Chairperson of MTRCB. After executing said AR or since October 10, 2010 and
up to the present, she never used her US passport again, he said.
Clearly, as held by the SC in Arnados case, Poes use of her US passport before she executed her
AR of US citizenship did not affect her re-acquisition of her natural-born Filipino citizen under RA 9225
as the mere use of such passport does not divest Filipino citizenship regained by repatriation. To
reiterate, what will disqualify her is if she used the US passport after executing the AR, he added.

Lawyers insist Grace Poe a natural-born Filipino

Published September 22, 2015 6:13pm

- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/537885/news/nation/lawyers-insist-grace-poe-a-naturalborn-filipino#sthash.qnwtso16.dpuf
Senator Grace Poe, being a foundling, is a natural-born Filipino and not a citizen one because she never
underwent naturalization process in the first place.
This was the statement issued by Poe's camp, through one of her lawyers George Garcia, in response to
Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio's pronouncement during a Senate Electoral Tribunal hearing
that the lawmaker's citizenship status is only naturalized and not natural born.
Election lawyer Romulo Macalintal, on the other hand, warned that disqualifying Poe on account of her biological
parents' uncertain citizenship would set a precedent in which similarly orphaned children would be disqualified
from running for elective posts.
Macalintal is also of the opinion that Poe is a natural-born Filipino.
There are only two types of citizens, natural-born or naturalized. If Senator Poe is not a foreigner who became a
naturalized Filipino citizen, therefore she is natural-born, Garcia said in a statement.
Garcia said that under Philippine law, a naturalized citizen would always mean to be a former foreigner.
You must be a former foreigner. You acquired your Philippine citizenship because you wanted to become a
Filipino and for you to become naturalized, the lawyer added.
Under the 1987 Constitution, only natural-born Filipino citizens are qualified to run for president, vice-president,
senator and congressman.
Garcia insisted the long-standing presumption and principle of customary international law that a foundling is
considered to have been born in the state where he or she was found and from parents of that countrys
nationality.
Garcia said the "legal presumption" that foundlings are natural-born Filipino citizens is the reason why Senator
Poe need not have to go through the process of naturalization, which is a legal procedure through which a foreign
citizen or national can become a Filipino citizen.
Garcia said natural-born citizens are those who do not need to perform any act to acquire or perfect their
citizenship. Did Senator Poe perform any act? Did she apply for anything? Did she apply or petition that she can
become a natural-born? Of course, the answer to these questions is no, he said.
In Poe's case, the senator did not apply for Philippine citizenship and it is the presumption of law, the
Constitution, and international convention and treaties that made her a natural-born citizen of the country,"
according to Garcia.
Garcia expressed hopes that Carpio's statement does not reflect the sentiment of the nine-member SET, majority
of the members of which are Poe's colleagues in the Senate.
Perhaps, this is just an initial reaction based on an initial interpretation of the law. We are hoping to fully convince
him (Carpio) to change his interpretation of the law by showing to him that at least Senator Grace Poe is not really
a naturalized but a natural-born citizen, Garcia said.
Garcia said Carpio's interpretation of the law was "erroneous" because a naturalized citizen would always mean
he or she was a former foreigner.
Macalintal agreed with Poe's lawyer that Poe, who was abandoned in Jaro Cathedral in Iloilo City, is a naturalborn Filipino.
The Philippines adopts the generally accepted principles of international law and forms part of the law of the land.
Ibig sabihin tinatanggap natin ang pandaigdigang batas bilang bahagi ng sarili nating batas. Ano ba ang sinasabi
ng pandaigdigang batas? Kapag napulot ka, ang iyong mga magulang ay presumed to be Filipinos, Macalintal
said.
Like what Garcia pointed out, Macalintal stressed that Poe never underwent a naturalization process.
"To be naturalized, you must have passed the naturalization law processes. Kailangan naga-apply ka ng
naturalization and so on and so forth. My question: did Sen. Poe undergo this process of naturalization? Wala.
Therefore, she is a natural-born Filipino citizen, he said.

Therefore, she is a natural-born Filipino citizen, he said.

Meanwhile, Macalintal said the decision on Poe's citizenship would have an effect on all abandoned children in
the Philippines.
Macalintal said declaring Poe a naturalized citizen would set a bad precedent since it would deprive similarly
orphaned children in the Philippines of their right to serve in government.
Ang mangyayari niyan, kawawa yung mga nasa lansangan nating mga bata. Kasi halimbawa, hindi mo alam
kung sino ang mga magulang mo ngayon, nasa DSWD (Department of Social Welfare and Development), ilang
libo yan, inalisan na natin ng karapatang mangarap na balang araw, pwede ka palang maging justice ng Supreme
Court, kasi ang justice ng Supreme Court, natural-born, Macalintal said.
Inaalisan natin sila ng karapatan maging congressman, senador, pangulo, pangalawang pangulo. Siguro yun ang
dapat isipin ng mga tao na nagkukwestyon ng mga karapatan ng isang napulot na bata, the lawyer added. NB,
GMA News

Petitioner to Grace Poe: Why correct honest mistake in COC only now?
Published November 10, 2015 7:11pm
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/543865/news/nation/petitioner-to-grace-poe-why-correcthonest-mistake-in-coc-only-now#sthash.RbC2U2v8.dpuf

One of the petitioners against the candidacy of Sen. Grace Poe

for president questioned why the period of residency that she
stated in her certificate of candidacy in 2012 was not corrected
until this year.
Lawyer Estrella Elamparo, the first of the four petitioners to
question Poe's candidacy for president, said the correction was
done "conveniently."
"Sabi niya nagkamali raw siya doon sa COC noong 2013
[elections]. Pero kung 'yun ay honest mistake, bakit hindi niya
in-amend at hindi niya binago? Tatlong taon na ang
nakakaraan, wala siyang ginawa para bawiin 'yung COC na
'yon," Elamparo told reporters on Tuesday afternoon after the
hearing for the petition she filed against Poe.
"Ngayong tatakbo siya bilang pangulo, ngayon lang niya
conveniently sinasabi na, 'Nagkamali po tayo dati, pero kahit
hindi natin itinama, pabayaan na lang, kalimutan na lang natin
'yun.' 'Di naman po siguro karapat-dapat," she added.
Elamparo filed a petition to deny due course, or to cancel COC,
against Poe last October 16, a day after the senator filed her
certificate with running-mate, Sen. Francis Escudero.
In her petition, the former legal counsel for the Government
Service Insurance System (GSIS) said Poe failed to satisfy the
citizenship and residency requirements for a presidential
candidate under the country's laws. Candidates for president
are required to have had at least 10 years of residency,
according to the Constitution.
The senator personally appeared at the hearing on Tuesday
afternoon but did not speak during the proceedings, as she
was represented by her legal counsel, George Garcia.

'We did not lie'

Garcia called the declaration of "6 years and 6 months" that
Poe placed in her COC in 2012 was "an honest mistake."
He said at the time, Poe counted from her second return to the
Philippines in 2006, instead of counting from May 2005, when
she and husband Neil Llamanzares came to the Philippines to
prepare for their relocation after living in the United States.
Asked during the hearing if it was an honest mistake, Garcia
said, "Yes, an honest mistake."
"We did not lie in order for us to be qualified [to run for
Senate]," he said, adding that the figure Poe gave was even
less than her months of residency at the time.
He added that they have made the correction in her COC for
president, where she wrote that she has been a resident of the
Philippines for 10 years and 11 months, counting from May
2005.
This is more than the nine years and six months based on
Elamparo's computation.
After the hearing, Poe defended her move to correct her
mistake in her 2012 COC.
"'Pag may nag-point out na mali 'yan, all you have to do is
change it, and if it's maliciously intended to make you qualified
for a position when you shouldn't be, doon lang nagkakaroon
ng problema," she told reporters.
"'Yung akin kulang nga 'yung inilagay ko, hindi sobra," she
added. KBK, GMA News

SET junks disqualification case vs. Grace Poe

Published November 17, 2015 1:46pm
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/544670/news/nation/set-junks-disqualification-case-vsgrace-poe#sthash.5xbJTOoX.dpuf
The nine-member Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) on Tuesday denied the petition to disqualify Senator Grace
Poe over her citizenship issue.
SET member Sen. Loren Legarda said the tribunal compsoed of six senators and three Supreme Court justices
voted 5-4 in favor of Poe, who is seeking the presidency in the 2016 elections.
"It was a vote of five to four. Five dismissing the petition of Mr. David, and four concurring with the petition of Mr.
David. In short, five voted to uphold the natural born citizenship of Sen. Mary Grace Poe Llamanzares, and four
voted against that," she said after emerging from the SET voting held at the Manila Polo Club in Makati City.
The disqualification case was filed by Rizalito David, a defeated senatorial candidate in the 2013 elections who
said Poe, a foundling, is not a natural-born Filipino.
Legarda said that she and fellow senators Vicente Sotto III, Pia Cayetano, Cynthia Villar, and Bam Aquino voted
to dismiss David's petition.
Those who voted in favor of the petition were Associate Justices Antonio Carpio, Teresita Leonardo-de Castro,
and Arturo Brion and Sen. Nancy Binay, whose father, Vice President Jejomar Binay, is also vying for the
presidency next year.
Not yet final
Legarda clarified that David still has the option to move within 10 days for the reconsideration of the SET decision.
If David files an appeal, the tribunal will reconvene in early December to decide on the matter, she added.
"Hindi pa tapos ang proseso. Mayroon pang 10 araw na nakatakda para sa possible motion for reconsideration.
So inabisuhan muna kami ni Associate Justice Tony Carpio na huwag muna magsalita tungkol sa issue," Legarda
said.
She said that the SET will have to promulgate its final decision before December 10, the deadline of the printing
of the ballots for the 2016 elections.
Legarda said she submitted a separate four-page opinion explaining her vote, which she would upload on her
website.
"Gusto ko maliwanag ang boto ko. Gusto kong malaman ninyong pinag-aralan kong husto, siniyasat at ako mismo
ang sumulat ng aking desisyon at hindi limitado sa mga legal na proceedings," she said.
The lawmaker added that her fellow SET members also submitted their respective opinions on the case.
Lunch longer than voting

Legarda, who arrived at the venue around noon, described the atmosphere during the voting as being "very calm,
short, friendly."
"We respected each other's decision," she added.
Legarda said the SET members no longer debated over the issue, adding that they spent more time having lunch
than deliberating on the issue.
"Sa nangyari kanina, wala nang debate unlike in the Senate. Kami ay nag-submit na ng aming opinyon, nakasulat
na iyon. So humingi na lamang si chairperson Justice Carpio ng boto. Sabi niya, 'Who are those in favor of
granting the petition?' So the four raised their hands," the lawmaker recounted.
"Then sabi niya, 'Who are those not in favor of granting the petition?' The five of us raised our hands. Ganoon kasimple and then we said goodbye," she added.

'Beyond Grace Poe'

She said two draft decisions were prepared prior to the voting, one granting David's petition and the other junking
it. After the voting, Legarda said "ni-route na iyong aming pinirmahan na majority decision dismissing the petition."
Legarda said "it was not easy" to vote on the case, adding that its outcome would have both legal and political
implications.
"The most important thing, I think, is this will have a great implication on foundlings. This issue goes beyond
Grace Poe. Ito ay makahulugan sa mga ampon na hindi alam ang kanilang pinanggalingan," said Legarda.
Lawyer George Garcia, Poes counsel, welcomed the decision, saying they are sharing it with the Filipino
foundlings.
"We would like to share this victory to the thousands of Filipino foundlings," he said in a text message to GMA
News Online. "Now your home finally as natural born citizens of this country! This is democracy as its best!"
Valenzuela Mayor Rex Gatchalian, Poes spokesperson, said the senator is thankful to the SET members for
upholding the rights of foundlings like her, adding that the decision clearly reaffirms that the laws are on her side.
We are confident that in the coming days, the various petitions pending in the Comelec will also be dismissed,
he said in a text message, referring to the four petitions seeking to disqualify Poe from the 2016 presidential race
filed with the Commission on Elections.
This positive decision as well as the recent Pulse Asia survey that shows her leading, will serve as inspiration
and guidance for Sen. Poe to further her advocacies of good governance, inclusive growth, and improving
competitiveness of our industries, he added.
Meanwhile, the camp of Vice President Jejomar Binay said the SET decision must be respected.
The SET has already decided on the matter. The Vice President enjoins everyone to respect the decision, said
lawyer Rico Quicho, Binay's spokesperson, in a text message to GMA News Online.
For his part, Manuelito Luna, David's legal counsel, said the annoucement was "premature."
"It's premature. There's no announcement yet. I'll await the announcement," he said via text message.

No interviews
Meanwhile, both Aquino and Cayetano refused to grant interviews.
In a text message to GMA News Online, Aquino said they were "asked not to speak to media."
Cayetano, in a press statement, said the case can still be considered pending as David can file a motion for
reconsideration.
"The case is still pending with us given that the petitioner has a right to file a Motion for Reconsideration," she
said.
Both Aquino and Cayetano said they will soon issue separate opinions explaining their vote.
House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr, on the other hand, congratulated Poe, saying the SET decision is
"democracy at work" which will allow for a "more interesting battle for the presidency."
"While she still has to hurdle Comelec cases filed against her, I am for trusting these strong institutions within our
government to afford everyone fair decisions based on evidence presented in every case," he said in a press
statement.
Senator Antonio Trillanes IV, for his part, said the disqualification case was a harassment right from the very start.
"Now that its over, we can start focusing on the real debate about character and issues," he said. with Amita
O. Legaspi and Rose-An Jessica Dioquino/KBK/ALG, GMA News

Rizalito David to appeal SET ruling on Grace Poe's case

Published November 19, 2015 2:01am
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/544970/news/nation/rizalito-david-to-appeal-set-ruling-ongrace-poe-s-case#sthash.F4OVzkK2.dpuf
Rizalito David, the petitioner in the disqualification case filed against Sen. Grace Poe before the Senate Electoral
Tribunal (SET) said the senators who voted to junk his complaint just voted due to "political accommodation" and
not based on legal issues.
Parang ang nangyari ngayon, 'O Grace pinagbigyan ka na namin, at least dito sa Senate Electoral Tribunal. Pero
pagdating dun sa Supreme Court, ay wala na kaming magagawa diyan kapag sinabi ng Supreme Court na hindi
ka pwedeng manatili bilang senador', David said in an interview aired on GMA News' 24 Oras on Wednesday.
David was referring to the five senators who are sitting as members of SET, who voted for the dismissal of his
disqualification case against Poe.
So, parang ang nangyari dito ay political accommodation, David said.
In a 5-4 vote, the SET on Tuesday dismissed David's disqualification case against Poe, which seeks to unseat the
latter from the Senate on the ground that she is allegedly not a natural-born Filipino citizen.
The SET members who voted to junk David's petition were Senators Vicente "Tito" Sotto III, Loren Legarda, Bam
Aquino, Cynthia Villar and Pia Cayetano.
Those who voted in favor of David's petition were Supreme Court (SC) Associate Justices Antonio Carpio,
Teresita Leonardo-De Castro and Arturo Brion as well as opposition Senator Nancy Binay, daughter of Vice
President Jejomar Binay.
VP Binay, Poe and David had earlier filed their certificate of candidacy to run for president in 2016 elections.
David said he will file a motion for reconsideration before the SET on Monday to urge the tribunal to reverse its
ruling.
David challeged the five senators to show that they are not voting based on politics by looking at the supposed
legal merits of the motion for reconsideration that he is about to file.
David had earlier said that he is ready to elevate his petition before the SC should the tribunal deny his motion for
reconsideration.
Let him (David) say what he wants. I know the truth and what is right, Sotto, who had been vocal about her
support for Poe's presidential candidacy, said in a statement.
Aquino, who is a member of the administration's Liberal Party (LP) and a staunch supporter of its presidential bet
Mar Roxas, said he voted based on legal arguments not on political considerations.
Kapag ikaw ay foundling at kung saan kang bansa nahanap, ikaw ay citizen ng bansang iyon,
internationally accepted principle po yan, Aquino said.

Aquino also stressed that the LP had never influenced him in making his vote on the petition.
In fairness to the party, wala hong sumubok na ibahin ang aking isipan, Aquino said.
Cayetano and Villar refused to comment on David's statement. GMA News was trying to get a reaction from
Legarda as of posting time.
Meanwhile, Poe's lawyer George Garcia, called on David to just accept his defeat.
That is a clear case of sour graping. He should be man enough to accept defeat and admit mistakes, Garcia said
in a statement.
In its decision, the SET said that under the 1935 Constitution as well as the 1987 Constitution, Poe is considered
a natural-born Filipino citizen.
We rule that respondent is a natural-born citizen under the 1935 Constitution and continue to be a natural-born
citizen as defined under the 1987 Constitution, as she is a 'citizen of the Philippines from birth without having to
perform any act to acquire or perfect (her) Philippine citizenship', a portion of the SET ruling read.
The tribunal said that while it was established that Poe is a foundling who was abandoned by her parents, the
petitioner was not able to prove that her parents are not Filipinos.
The fact that petitioner was able to show that respondent is a foundling did not necessarily carry with it the proof
that respondent's parents were/are not citizens of the Philippines, the SET said.
On the contrary, it did not exclude the possibility that her parents are citizens of the Philippines, the tribunal
added. -Elizabeth Marcelo/NB, GMA News

Grace Poe's residency in PH: When do we start counting?

Published 10:46 AM, November 26, 2015

http://www.rappler.com/nation/politics/elections/2016/114053comelec-oral-arguments-grace-poe-residency
The senator believes her period of residence in the Philippines
up to the day before elections is 10 years and 11 months, but
her critics say she still lacks months to meet the residency
requirement for presidential candidates.
MANILA, Philippines Aside from her citizenship, Senator Grace Poe's qualification to run as president
in the 2016 elections is also being questioned on the basis of her residency in the Philippines.
The Philippine Constitution not only requires a president to be a natural-born citizen he or she should
also be a resident of the Philippines "for at least 10 years immediately preceding such election."
Poe's critics believe she has not met this 10-year requirement and should therefore be disqualified as a
presidential candidate in the upcoming elections. (READ: Poe not qualified? Let her run first, lawyer
tells Comelec)
At least two of the 4 petitions now lodged at the Commission on Elections (Comelec) questioned Poe's
residency before the poll body. (READ:TIMELINE: Grace Poe's citizenship, residency)
But the basis of the petitioners vary, according to their statements during and after oral arguments at
the Comelec First Division on Wednesday, November 25.

2012 COC
Former senator Francisco "Kit" Tatad based his claim on Poe's certificate of candidacy (COC) for the
2013 midterm elections. Back then, she wrote that she has been a resident of the Philippines for 6
years and 6 months.
Tatad's lawyer Manuelito Luna said that if one computes using this "judicial admission," then Poe would
still be short by 5 to 6 months on the day before May 9, 2016.
But George Garcia, one of Poe's counsels, explained what happened in 2012: The senator supposedly
started counting from March 2006 up to September 2012, instead of until May 2013.
"Sometime po noong March 2006, bumalik siya dito sa Pilipinas, kasama ang asawa niya, na at that
time po nag-resign na rin po bilang isang empleyado sa America, wala nang trabaho sa America. So
pagbalik po niya, dun niya kinount yung 6 years and 6 months na nakalagay sa kanyangcertificate of
candidacy sa pagka-senador, sa March 2006," he said.
(Sometime in March 2006, she came back to the Philippines together with her husband, who, at that
time, already resigned as an employee in America, and no longer has a job in America. So when she
came back, that's how she got the 6 years and 6 months written in her certificate of candidacy as
senator, from March 2006.)

Oath of allegiance to PH
For De La Salle University professor and political analyst Antonio Contreras, meanwhile, the residency
count should start from July 7, 2006, when Poe took an Oath of Allegiance to the Republic of the
Philippines. With this count, Poe would still fall short of two months.
Contreras cited the 2002 case of Coquilla vs Comelec, where the Supreme Court (SC) upheld the
decision of the Comelec in ordering the cancellation of the COC of Teodulo Coquilla for mayor of Oras,
Eastern Samar, in the May 14, 2001 elections.
The SC said the term "residence" refers to domicile or legal residence the place where one has a
permanent home, and where he intends to return or remain. But in the 2002 case, Coquilla lost his
domicile of origin when he became a US citizen.
"By having been naturalized abroad, he lost his Philippine citizenship and with it his residence in the
Philippines. Until his reacquisition of Philippine citizenship on November 10, 2000, petitioner did not
reacquire his legal residence in this country," the decision read.
For Contreras, this is the controlling jurisprudence in Poe's case.

Return to PH
When Poe filed her COC for the 2016 elections, she wrote that her period of residence in the
Philippines up to the day before elections is 10 years and 11 months.
Her count started from May 24, 2005, when she returned to the Philippines after they, as a family,
decided to stay here.
According to Garcia, there are 3 prerequisites to establish residence in the Philippines: intent to remain,
physical presence, and intent to abandon the former domicile.
"When it comes to the issue of residency, you always look at the totality. You cannot look singularly at
each and every evidence," he said.
Their basis is Poe's sworn questionnaire in 2011, when she executed an Oath/Affirmation of
Renunciation of Nationality of the United States (US) before the Vice Consul at the US Embassy in
Manila. On page 4 of the questionnaire, Poe wrote:
"I became a resident of the Philippines once again since 2005. My mother still resides in the

Philippines. My husband and I are both employed and own properties in the Philippines. As a dual
citizen (Filipino-American) since 2006, I've voted in two Philippine national elections. My three children
study and reside in the Philippines."
Garcia said when Poe wrote that, the senator then had "no inkling, no intention yet" to run "for even
the barangay (village) chairman."
"That was a declaration under oath. As far as the respondent is concerned, to her mind, she had been a
resident of the Philippines since 2005, she had bodily presence since May 24, 2005 immediately after
the death of her father, she returned to the Philippines to join her grieving mother," the lawyer explained
A month after her return to the country, Poe's children already started attending Philippine schools,
while in July 2005, she secured her Philippine Taxpayer's Identification Number (TIN) to settle her
father's estate. Rappler.com

Comelec division disqualifies Poe from 2016 presidential race

Published December 1, 2015 6:13pm
- See more at: http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/546387/news/nation/comelec-division-disqualifies-poefrom-2016-presidential-race#sthash.GvEXDR03.dpuf
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) Second Division has disqualified Senator Grace Poe from the 2016
presidential race for failing to meet requirements of the Constitution for presidential candidates.
In a 34-page resolution, the three-member division granted the petition of lawyer Estrella Elamparo seeking the
cancellation of Poe's certificate of candidacy for president.
"An aspirant for the highest position in the land must strictly adhere to the provisions of the highest law of the land
the Constitution," the resolution read.
"We would have wanted to declare the respondent eligible to seek the highest position in the land within the gift of
our people. After all, she is not only popular; she is, potentially, a good leader.
"However, it is our bounden duty to resolve this case by applying the Constitution, law, jurisprudence, and none
other."
Residency requirement
The division sided with Elamparo's argument that Poe failed to meet the 10-year residency requirement mandated
by the Constitution for a presidential candidate.
"Wherefore, in view of all the foregoing considerations, the instant Petition to Deny Due Course to or Cancel
Certificate of Candidacy is hereby granted," the division said in its resolution.
"Accordingly, the Certificate of Candidacy for President of the Republic of the Philippines in the May 9, 2016
National and Local Elections filed by respondent Mary Grace Natividad Sonora Poe Llamanzares is hereby
cancelled," it added.
FULL TEXT: Comelec resolution disqualifying Grace Poe
The members of the division are Commissioners Al Parreo, who penned the resolution, Arthur Lim, and Sheriff
Abas.
The Comelec division said Poe, who has been leading presidential preference polls over the past several months,
became a resident only on July 2006 when she applied for dual citizenship, or two months short of meeting the
10-year residency rule.
The division also said Poe "deliberately attempted to mislead or misinform the electorate or hide a fact from them
when she supplied the answer '10 years and 11 months' to the question" on her period of residence in the
Philippines in her COC."

Not a natural-born Filipino

The resolution also contended that Poe, a foundling was not a natural-born Filipino.
"Nowhere in any of the three Constitutions of the Philippines is there a direct or indirect inclusion of a foundling as
a natural-born Filipino citizen, or a Filipino at birth," the resolution read.

It added that there is no constitutional or legal basis to consider a foundling as a natural-born citizen.
However, the division agreed with Poe that "the citizenship issue involving foundlings is a question of first
impression in that, to our best knowledge, there is no jurisprudence on the issue."
It added that unless the issue is definitively resolved by the Supreme Court, Poe's assertion that she is a naturalborn citizen is made in good faith.
"Hence, we are not prepared to rule that on the citizenship issue she deliberately attempted to mislead, misinform,
or hide a material fact from the electorate," the ruling read.
Poe disappointed
Poe, for her part, expressed dismay over the decision.
"I am disappointed in the decision, but this is not the end of the process. We will continue to fight for the rights of
foundlings and the fundamental right of the people to choose their leaders," Poe said in a statement.
"I maintain that I am a natural born Filipino and have complied with the ten-year residency requirement based on
settled applicable jurisprudence," she added.
Poe compared the issues against her to the disqualification cases filed against her adoptive father, Fernando Poe
Jr., when he ran for president in 2004.
"My critics will use any excuse to exclude me, much like they tried to do when FPJ ran for president, and in the
process disenfranchising the people as well. They show a lack of trust in the ability of Filipinos to make the right
decision," Poe said.
"I have faith in the process, and we are confident that the Comelec en banc will side with the interest of the
people," she added.
Appeal forthcoming
Poe's camp insisted that she became a resident in May 2005.
"Yung 10-year residency should be counted from the reacquisition of Philippine citizenship, meaning dapat sa
2006, which is noong hearing namin ay maliwanag na maliwanag na napatunayan namin na may residency si
Sen. Grace Poe as early as 2005, May 25," said Poe's lawyer George Garcia, adding that she is also a naturalborn Filipino.
Poe's camp said they will appeal the decision within five days before the Comelec en banc.
Elamparo's petition was just one of the four seeking to disqualify Poe from the presidential race. Amita O.
Legaspi and Joseph Morong/KBK, GMA News

TIMELINE: Grace Poe's citizenship, residency

Rappler traces the citizenship and residency of Senator Grace

Poe, as shown in her verified answer submitted to the Senate
Electoral Tribunal.
Published: 9:30 PM, September 04, 2015

http://www.rappler.com/nation/politics/elections/2016/104731grace-poe-citizenship-residency-timeline-arguments
MANILA, Philippines Senator Grace Poe finally answered the citizenship and residency issues hurled
at her, submitting a 107-page verified answer with supporting documents to the Senate Electoral
Tribunal. (READ:DOCUMENTS: Proof of citizenship submitted by Grace Poe to SET)
Amid fears of tampering of documents, the presidential polls front runner now says she is relieved to
finally have the chance to explain her side in the proper forum.
Below are the main points of her reply and the timeline of her life as a Filipino, based on documents she
submitted.
Main points of Poe's arguments

Poes camp says the citizenship and residency issues

should be taken up separately.

Poe complied with the citizenship and residency

requirement for a senator.
Poe was already a resident of the Philippines in May 2005,
longer than what she indicated in her Certificate of
Candidacy.
She (together with her 3 kids) became a Filipino citizen
(dual citizen) in 2006. She renounced her American
citizenship on October 21, 2010, when she took an oath in
Philippine government.
She re-affirmed this renunciation in 2011 before a vice
consul at the United States embassy in Manila.
The US State Department approved this in February 2012
but her last US passport and the approved document
showed she self expatriated herself on October 21, 2010.

From birth to present

1968
September 3 This is Poes date of birth in documents. Edgardo Militar found infant Poe in the Parish
of Jaro in Iloilo.
September 6 Emiliano Militar reported to the Office of the Civil Registrar of Iloilo City that they found
an infant. (READ: In Iloilo, Grace Poe finds new clues to real parents)
Name in Original Certificate of Live Birth: Mary Grace Natividad Contreras Militar.

1974
May 13 Municipal Court of San Juan granted the petition for adoption of Poe by movie stars Jesusa
Sonora Poe (Susan Roces) and Ronald Allan Kelley Poe (Fernando Poe Jr).
At the time, her name was legally changed to Mary Grace Natividad Sonora Poe.
While petitioner Rizalito David said Poes adoption did not confer to her the same Philippine citizenship
of her adoptive parents and that she remains to be stateless, Poe argued that the rights of a foundling
are supported by international declarations, most of which the Philippines is a signatory to.
On August 21, 1990, the Philippines ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child,
protecting the right of a new-born to a nationality, and to ensure that every child is protected from
statelessness from birth.
The 1966 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which the Philippines ratified on
October 23, 1986, recognized the right of every child to acquire a nationality.
While the country adopted these two conventions years after Poe was born, her camp said they are
retroactive. Citing the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, they said there is no prohibition
against the retroactive application of treaties unless a different intention appears.
What is prohibited, Poes camp said, is the application of a treaty to a fact or status which does not exist
before the treaty entered into force. After all, they said Poe remained to be a foundling before and after
the ratifications.
Poes camp also cited the deliberations of the framers of the 1935 Constitution. While it did not
expressly mention foundlings in Section 1, Article 4, former Senator Manuel Roxas said they would not
include foundlings because the number of cases are few and that international laws are there to protect
them.
Mr. President, my humble opinion is that these cases are few and far in between, that the constitution
need [not] refer to them. By international law the principle that children or people born in a country of
unknown parents are citizens in this nation is recognized, and it is not necessary to include a provision
on the subject exhaustively, Roxas said, as cited by Poes verified answer.
Poes lawyers also cited other countries that have the same citizenship law as the Philippines (jus
sanguinis or by blood). Countries such as Austria and United Kingdom have passed laws that
presume foundlings to be born of parents who are citizens of the country in which they are found.
Her lawyers also argued that the Philippines had long recognized the generally accepted principle of
international law on foundlings. Citing DOJ Opinion Number 189, series of 1951, Poes camp said the
DOJ recognized foundlings as citizens of the country in which they are found.
1986
December 13 After Poe turned 18 years old, she obtained a voters identification card at Greenhills,
San Juan, but the name indicated was Ma. Gracia S. Poe.

1988
April 4 As a deemed natural born Filipino, she was issued a Philippine passport.
1991
July 27 She got married to husband Neil Llamanzares in the Philippines. Her husband is a dual
citizen of the US and the Philippines since birth.
July 29 Then newlyweds Neil and Grace went to the US to start a family.
1992
April 16 Son Brian was born a US citizen in Washington, DC.
1993
April 5 Poe was issued a Philippine passport
1998
May 19 Poe was issued a Philippine passport. She went back to the Philippines to give birth to her
second child.
July 10 She gave birth to second child Hanna in the Philippines.
2001
October 18 Poe was naturalized as a citizen of the US after being petitioned by her husband who is a
dual citizen. As she took an oath of allegiance to the US, she renounced her Philippine citizenship:
"I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity
to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty, of whom or which I have heretofore been a
subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of
America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same;
that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform
noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will
perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take
this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God."
The camp of Poe, however, said Poe took an oath of allegiance to the US only as a necessary
condition for her naturalization.
After her naturalization, [Poe] maintained her ties to the Philippines and visited the country frequently.
She never foreclosed the possibility of one day returning to the Philippines, as indeed, she returned in
2005, stated in the verified reply.

2004
April 8 Then pregnant Poe went back to the Philippines with second daughter Hanna.
May 10 The 2004 presidential elections was held. Poes father FPJ ran and lost to then incumbent
President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in what was widely believed to be a rigged elections.
June 5 She gave birth to youngest child Anika in the Philippines.
July 8 She went back to the US with Hanna and Anika.
December 13 Upon hearing of the condition of her father, she went back to the Philippines and
arrived on this date.
December 14 FPJ died.
From December 13 to February 3, 2005 Poe stayed in the Philippines to help arrange fathers
funeral and settle his estate.
2005
February 3 She left the Philippines and went back to the US.
May 24 After deciding as a family, Poe returned to the Philippines while husband Neil stayed in the
US to finish projects and arrange the sale of their US home.
June Her kids started attending Philippine schools.
July 7 Poe got her Philippine Taxpayers Identification Number (TIN) to settle her fathers estate.
It is during this year that Poe, a US citizen at the time, said she started her residency in the Philippines.
2006
April 27 The familys US house was sold.
May 4 After resigning from his work in the US, husband Neil returned to the Philippines.
July Neil started working for San Miguel Corporation.
July 7 As required by Republic Act Number 9225 or the Citizenship Retention and Reacquisition Act
of 2003," Poe took her Oath of Allegiance to the Republic of the Philippines for her to re-acquire her
natural born status. She also requested the same for her 3 children, which is allowed under the same
law.
Section 3 of the law states that "[a]ny provision of law to the contrary notwithstanding, natural-born
citizenship by reason of their naturalization as citizens of a foreign country are hereby deemed to have
re-acquired Philippine citizenship upon taking the following oath of allegiance to the Republic:"
July 10 Poe filed for dual citizenship, in accordance to RA 9225. Ironic as it may seem, this law used
by Poe to push for her case was signed by former President Gloria Arroyo in 2003, who allegedly
cheated her father in the 2004 presidential elections.
Following the law, she filed with the Bureau of Immigration (BI) a sworn petition to reacquire her naturalborn Philippine citizenship. She used her cancelled Philippine passport as proof of former natural born
status. This isallowed by the Bureau of Immigration.
July 18 Then BI Commissioner Alipio Fernandez Jr issued an order granting Poes petitions.
Poes camp said this also grants her 3 children Philippine citizenship.

July 31 The BI issued Identification Certificates (IC) for Poe and her kids. This means Poe and her 3
kids re-acquired their Philippine citizenship as per the law. At this point, they are now dual citizens of
the US and the Philippines.
August 31 Poe registered as a voter of Barangay Santa Lucia, San Juan. It is a requirement for a
voter to have resided for at least a year in the Philippines before the elections. With this and with the
presumption of regularity, Poes voter ID implied she was in the country not later than August 31, 2005.
2009
October 13 As a dual citizen, she was issued a Philippine passport.
Published reports said that Poe used her US passport from 2005 to December 2009 at least 21 times in
entering and leaving the country. Some say these repeated acts alone may weaken her defense
of animus revertendi or intention to return to domicile. (READ: Grace Poe and Pandoras box: Legal
issues in her candidacy)
It is important to note, however, that from 2005 to early July 2006, Poe was a US citizen and, therefore,
only had a US passport.
From July 2006 to 2009, meanwhile, she already acquired dual citizenship of the Philippines and the
US and had the discretion to use either of the two passports in her travels.
Poes camp argued that her oath of allegiance to the Philippines in 2006 was not 'forfeited' or rendered
'meaningless' simply because she continued using her US passport after she had reacquired her
natural-born Philippine citizenship on 7 July 2006.
2010
October 6 President Benigno Aquino III appointed her as chairperson of the Movie and Television
Review and Classification Board (MTRCB), but Poe said she did not accept it immediately. In the
verified answer, Poe said she was informed that the same RA 9225 prohibits appointment of a dual
citizen to government UNLESS she renounces her foreign citizenship.
Section 5 of the law states that:
Those appointed to any public office shall subscribe and swear to an oath of allegiance to the Republic
of the Philippines and its duly constituted authorities prior to their assumption of office: Provided, That
they renounce their oath of allegiance to the country where they took that oath.
October 20 Before a notary public in Pasig City, she signed an Affidavit of Renunciation of
Allegiance to the United States of America and Renunciation of American Citizenship.
Section 3 of RA 9225 also states:
Those seeking elective public in the Philippines shall meet the qualification for holding such public
office as required by the Constitution and existing laws and, at the time of the filing of the certificate of
candidacy, make a personal and sworn renunciation of any and all foreign citizenship before any public
officer authorized to administer an oath.
October 21 She submitted to the BI the notarized document and took oath as MTRCB chair. Poe
argued that when she sat as government official, she had already renounced her American citizenship.
Her lawyers also argued that under Philippine law, Poe continued to be a US citizen until 20 October
2010 when she renounced her US citizenship before a notary public.
They added "under the laws of the US, her act of taking her oath of office as MTRCB Chairperson was
an expatriating act which caused her to lose her US citizenship.
In her former US passport, it was indicated that she self-expatriated herself on October 21, 2010, the
day she took oath in Philippine government.

2011
July 12 she executed before the Vice Consul at the US Embassy in Manila an Oath/Affirmation of
Renunciation of Nationality of the United States. Poe also accomplished a sworn questionnaire before
the US Vice consul.
On page 4 of the questionnaire, Poe wrote:
I became a resident of the Philippines once again since 2005. My mother still resides in the
Philippines. My husband and I are both employed and own properties in the Philippines. As a dual
citizen (Filipino-American) since 2006, Ive voted in two Philippine national elections. My three children
study and reside in the Philippines
December 9 Poes Certificate of Loss of Nationality of the US was signed by the Vice Consul on this
date.
In this document, it was stated that Poe expatriated her self on October 21, 2010, when she took an
oath of office as MTRCB chair. This is the same date shown in her former US passport.
2012
February 3 The certificate of loss of nationality was approved by the State Department only in 2012.
Poe, in an interview on June 10, 2015, said: "Ngayon tungkol dun sa US, ni-release po nila ang aking
renunciation 2012. Bakit? Sapagkat sila ay may prosesong napakahaba. Hindi ka basta pupunta sa US
embassy para mag-submit. Kailangan doon ang tax return mo doon in the last 5 years, ari-arian mo
in the last 5 years. Ang daming dokumento.
(Now, about the US, they released my renunciation in 2012. Why? Because they have a long process.
You cannot just go to US embassy to submit. The have to look into your tax returns from the last 5
years, your properties in the last 5 years. There are many documents needed.)
October 2 Poe filed her Certificate of Candidacy (COC).
Petitioner David accused Poe of lying in her COC when she said she had been residing in the country
for 6 years and 6 months as of May 13, 2013. With all the arguments earlier discussed, Poes lawyers
said this allegation is false, as Poe met the two-year residency requirement for a senator.
In a foreshadowing of what may be thrown at her in 2016, Poes lawyers, in the verified reply, argued
that Poe made an honest mistake in her COC.
The truth is that, as of 13 May 2013, [Poe] had been residing in the Philippines for more than six (6)
years and six (6) months." They said this mistake was an "excusable error arising from complex legal
principles that a layman is not expected to fully know, much less understand." They said Poe was not
accompanied by a legal counsel when she filled out the form.
They also argued that good faith is more manifested because Poe indicated a shorter period of stay in
her COC, saying she would have benefitted more if she indicated a longer period. This, they said,
clearly shows that she honestly misunderstood what was being asked of her in her COC, and that she
did not intend to mislead or deceive anyone.
Her camp said it is not the first time a candidate committed an honest mistake in stating her period of
residency in the COC.
The Supreme Court was faced with precisely this problem in Romualdez-Marcos vs. COMELEC.
However, instead of making the candidate pay for her mistake by disqualifying her, the Supreme Court
stressed that the 'residency requirement' is ultimately a question of fact. The statement in the COC is
not 'decisive.'

2013
May 16 Poe was proclaimed senator of the Philippines after topping the senatorial elections.
December 19 As a senator, she was issued a diplomatic passport.
2014
March 18 She was issued a regular Philippine passport.
2015
August 6 David filed a disqualification case against Poe before the Senate Electoral Tribunal.
August 17 David filed a similar case before the Commission on Elections.
September 1 Poe submitted her verified answer with supporting documents to the SET, with the
following prayers:

1. Prayer for Summary Dismissal, as the petition is

insufficient in form and substance, was filed beyond the
prescribed period, and that David committed willful and
deliberate forum-shopping.
2. Motion for Preliminary Hearing on Grounds for Immediate
Dismissal / Affirmative Defenses
3. Motion to Cite Petitioner for Direct Contempt of Court for
willful and deliberate forum shopping.
4. Counterclaim for Indirect Contempt of Court for failure to
inform [SET] of the filing of his similar complaint with the
Comelec Law Department.
Rappler.com

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