SC upholds ruling on NE solon’s US citizenship
>> Friday, November 19, 2021
After five years of
protracted legal battle, the Supreme Court (SC) finally put to rest the issue
relating to the citizenship of Rep. Rosanna Vergara of the third congressional
district of Nueva Ecija.
The high tribunal, in an en banc decision on Oct. 5, upheld the ruling of the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal, which declared Vergara a Filipino citizen and qualified to be a member of Congress.
Vergara was born to Filipino parents on Nov. 5, 1963.
She was naturalized as an American citizen in 1998 and reacquired her Filipino citizenship in 2006.
She won as representative of the third district of Nueva Ecija in the 2016 elections, handing Gov. Aurelio Umali his first political loss in 15 years.
The camp of Umali, led by Philip Piccio, an executive assistant at the Nueva Ecija provincial government, filed multiple suits against Vergara to question her citizenship.
Umali’s camp said the Bureau of Immigration had only photocopies of her application for reacquisition of her Filipino citizenship.
During an inquiry conducted by the House committee on good government and public accountability on the ”mysterious loss” of Vergara’s records, Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente, affirmed that the lawmaker applied and was granted the reacquisition of her Filipino citizenship in November 2006.
The SC stressed the policy of the state to hold the official custodian of public records accountable for their loss.
”To rule otherwise would set the dangerous precedent that documents duly filed but have gone missing while in the custody of the receiving agency without fault or even knowledge of the persons filing, will be rendered useless and void,” the SC said.
The high tribunal, in an en banc decision on Oct. 5, upheld the ruling of the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal, which declared Vergara a Filipino citizen and qualified to be a member of Congress.
Vergara was born to Filipino parents on Nov. 5, 1963.
She was naturalized as an American citizen in 1998 and reacquired her Filipino citizenship in 2006.
She won as representative of the third district of Nueva Ecija in the 2016 elections, handing Gov. Aurelio Umali his first political loss in 15 years.
The camp of Umali, led by Philip Piccio, an executive assistant at the Nueva Ecija provincial government, filed multiple suits against Vergara to question her citizenship.
Umali’s camp said the Bureau of Immigration had only photocopies of her application for reacquisition of her Filipino citizenship.
During an inquiry conducted by the House committee on good government and public accountability on the ”mysterious loss” of Vergara’s records, Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente, affirmed that the lawmaker applied and was granted the reacquisition of her Filipino citizenship in November 2006.
The SC stressed the policy of the state to hold the official custodian of public records accountable for their loss.
”To rule otherwise would set the dangerous precedent that documents duly filed but have gone missing while in the custody of the receiving agency without fault or even knowledge of the persons filing, will be rendered useless and void,” the SC said.
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