G.R. No. 248985 , October 5, 2021
PHILIP HERNANDEZ PICCIO, PETITIONER, VS. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ELECTORAL TRIBUNAL AND ROSANNA VERGARA VERGARA, RESPONDENTS.

FACTS

Rosanna Vergara Vergara, a natural-born Filipino citizen, moved to the USA in 1998 and became an American citizen. In November 2006, she filed a Petition for the Issuance of an Identification Certificate (IC) under Republic Act No. 9225 (R.A. 9225) to reacquire Philippine citizenship. She took her Oath of Allegiance on November 26, 2006. The Bureau of Immigration (BI) Task Force recommended approval, and BI Commissioner Alipio F. Fernandez, Jr. granted the petition in an Order dated November 30, 2006, directing the issuance of an IC. Vergara was issued IC No. 06-12955. She later executed an Affidavit of Renunciation of Foreign Citizenship on September 4, 2015.
In October 2015, Vergara filed a Certificate of Candidacy for Representative of the Third District of Nueva Ecija. Philip Hernandez Piccio filed a Petition to Deny Due Course and/or Cancel her Certificate of Candidacy before the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), alleging she failed to meet citizenship, residency, and voter registration requirements. Vergara won the May 2016 elections, was proclaimed, and assumed office. The COMELEC dismissed Piccio’s petition, finding she had reacquired Philippine citizenship under R.A. 9225.
Piccio then sought documents related to Vergara’s reacquisition. The Office of the Clerk of Court of Manila issued a Certification dated May 24, 2016, stating the notary public before whom Vergara’s Oath was acknowledged did not submit the notarial book containing it. Piccio also requested documents from the BI. BI Commissioner Ronaldo A. Geron, in letters dated May 20 and June 2, 2016, initially stated the BI only had photocopies and later claimed no record of Vergara’s R.A. 9225 petition or IC existed. Vergara sought clarification from the BI. Newly-appointed BI Commissioner Jaime H. Morente, in a Letter-Reply dated August 10, 2016, confirmed that Vergara’s petition was duly received, processed, and approved, and that IC No. 06-12955 was issued, noting her records were borrowed by Commissioner Geron and an investigation into alleged tampering was ordered.
On July 11, 2016, Piccio filed a petition for quo warranto before the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET), alleging Vergara was ineligible as she did not validly reacquire Philippine citizenship, citing the Clerk of Court’s Certification and Commissioner Geron’s letters. The HRET dismissed the petition, affirming Vergara’s proclamation. Piccio’s motion for reconsideration was denied.

ISSUE

Whether the HRET committed grave abuse of discretion in dismissing the quo warranto petition and affirming Vergara’s eligibility as a Member of the House of Representatives.

RULING

The Supreme Court dismissed the Petition for Certiorari. The HRET did not commit grave abuse of discretion. The Court found that Vergara had duly reacquired her Philippine citizenship under R.A. 9225. The BI Order dated November 30, 2006, granting her petition and directing the issuance of an IC, was a valid official act entitled to a presumption of regularity. The subsequent issuance of IC No. 06-12955 was conclusive proof of her reacquisition. The irregularities in the notarial submission of the Oath of Allegiance and the conflicting letters from BI commissioners did not overcome this presumption or invalidate the BI’s official acts. The BI’s confirmation through Commissioner Morente that her petition was duly processed and approved, and that her records were tampered with, supported the validity of her reacquisition. The HRET’s factual findings, including its determination of Vergara’s citizenship, are conclusive upon the Supreme Court, absent a showing of grave abuse of discretion. No such abuse was present.