LAKAS Rep. Jocelyn Limkaichong of Negros Oriental has asked the Supreme Court (SC) to set for oral argument the consolidated cases filed before it questioning her election as a member of Congress.

In a six-page motion, Limkaichong, through her lawyer Pete Quirino-Quadra, stressed that the oral argument is also necessary in order to settle the issues on jurisdiction and constitutionality which she raised in her petition.

“We respectfully pray that the… cases be set for oral argument on the …jurisdictional and constitutional questions that we have raised,” Limkaichong said.

In her petition, Limakaichong also asked the Court to nullify the resolution issued by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) disqualifying her as a congressional candidate for the province’s First District in the May 14, 2007 elections on the ground that she is not a natural-born Filipino citizen.

Limkaichong insisted that she is a natural-born Filipino citizen because, at the time of her birth on November 9, 1959, her father Julio Sy was already a naturalized Filipino citizen.

The Comelec’s Second Division ruled on May 17, 2007, to disqualify Limkaichong, saying that her father failed to acquire Filipino citizenship through naturalization proceedings before a court.

Limkaichong won by a majority of 7,746 votes over her next rival Olivia Paras, and less than 40,000 votes over the third placer, former congressman Jerome Paras.

Of the consolidated four cases in the Court, one was filed by Limkaichong, while the others were initiated by Louis Biraogo, Renald Villando and Olivia Paras, who ran against her in the May 14, 2007 elections.

In particular, Limkaichong assailed as unconstitutional the contention of her rivals that the June 29, 2007, Comelec en banc resolution affirming the May 17, 2007, resolution of the Comelec Second Division disqualifying her is allegedly final and executory because she did not file a petition for certiorari within five days from the promulgation of the June 29, 2007, Comelec en banc resolution.

She cited Section 7, Article 9 of the Constitution and Section 2, Rule 64 of the Rules of Court, which provides that “Any decision, order, or ruling of its Commissions may be brought to the Supreme Court on certiorari by the aggrieved party within thirty days [30] from receipt of a copy thereof.”

In this case, Limkaichong received the Comelec en banc resolution dated June 29, 2007 on July 3, 2007. The petition for certiorari was filed before the SC on August 1, 2007, within the reglementary period of 30 days.

She said that since the petition was filed within the required period, there is no reason for the Court not to rule on the jurisdictional issues that she has raised.

Limkaichong also urged the SC to resolve the conflicting decisions of the Comelec involving her candidacy and proclamation as the duly elected representative of the First District of Negros Oriental.

Limkaichong was referring to the May 17, 2007, resolution of the Comelec Second Division and the evenly divided June 29, 2007, Comelec en banc resolution affirming the said May 17, 2007 resolution disqualifying her from being a congressional candidate.

A day after the May 17, 2007, resolution was issued, the Comelec en banc promulgated Resolution 8062, providing that there shall be no “suspension of proclamation of winning candidates with pending disqualification cases…without prejudice to the continuation of the hearing and resolution of the involved cases”

Despite the Comelec resolution, Villando and Paras questioned the proclamation of Limkaichong.

In her memorandum submitted to the SC, Limkaichong stressed that her father filed his petition for naturalization on July 28, 1955, when he was still single, at the age of 22, with the Court of First Instance of Negros Oriental, Branch 2. On May 27, 1956, Julio Sy married Anecia Uy Guangco-Dy,  a natural-born Filipino citizen.

After the hearing of July 10, 1959, the Court of First Instance on September 21, 1959, issued the order declaring Julio Ong Sy a naturalized Filipino citizen. On October 21, 1959, Julio Ong Sy took his oath of allegiance and was issued the Certificate of Naturalization.

She maintained that the citizenship of his father cannot be “collaterally attacked” in a disqualification case considering the SC had earlier held that the procedure to declare null and void the grant of citizenship through naturalization pursuant to final judgments of competent courts and after the oaths of allegiance had been taken and the certificates of naturalization is by cancellation of naturalization certificate.

She pointed out that up to the present, the Solicitor General has not filed any petition seeking the cancellation of his father’s naturalization certificate.

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Negros solon asks SC to set oral arguments on election case

LAKAS Rep. Jocelyn Limkaichong of Negros Oriental has asked the Supreme Court (SC) to set for oral argument the consolidated cases filed before it questioning her election as a member of Congress.

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