GR L 5098; (November, 1953) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-5098 November 27, 1953
In the Matter of the Petition of CERVERLEON T. DY to be admitted a citizen of the Philippines; CERVERLEON T. DY, petitioner-appellee, vs. REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES, oppositor-appellant.
FACTS
This is an appeal by the Government from a decision of the Court of First Instance of La Union granting the petition for naturalization filed by Cerverleon T. Dy. The Solicitor General contended that the petitioner failed to file a declaration of intention to become a citizen within the statutory one-year period, arguing he was not exempt from this requirement. The petitioner was born in the Philippines and was 26 years old when he filed his petition on March 21, 1949. Initially, the Supreme Court, in a decision dated March 10, 1953, reversed the lower court’s decision, construing the petitioner’s testimony that he reached “fourth year high school” to mean he had not completed the full secondary course and thus was not exempt from filing the declaration. Upon the petitioner’s motion for reconsideration, the Supreme Court resolved on July 14, 1953, to set aside its decision and remand the case to the trial court to receive evidence on whether the petitioner finished his fourth year and graduated from high school. The trial court returned the case with additional evidence consisting of the petitioner’s testimony that he graduated from high school in 1940 and the testimony of Pastor Panay, the Director of La Union Academy, confirming the petitioner’s graduation from that government-recognized academy in 1940.
ISSUE
Whether the petitioner-appellee, Cerverleon T. Dy, was exempt from filing a declaration of intention to become a Filipino citizen due to having completed secondary education (high school) in the Philippines.
RULING
The Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Court of First Instance of La Union granting the petition for naturalization. The Court held that based on the uncontradicted evidence presented—specifically, the petitioner’s positive testimony and the corroborating testimony of the academy director—the petitioner did graduate from high school in 1940. Therefore, he was exempt from filing a declaration of intention to become a Filipino citizen. The Court further noted that the petitioner was in all other respects admittedly qualified for naturalization. The appealed decision was affirmed without costs.