Case Digest (G.R. No. 135083)
Facts:
Ernesto S. Mercado v. Eduardo Barrios Manzano and the Commission on Elections, G.R. No. 135083, May 26, 1999, the Supreme Court En Banc, Mendoza, J., writing for the Court.Petitioner Ernesto S. Mercado and private respondent Eduardo B. Manzano (with Gabriel V. Daza III also a candidate) contested the May 11, 1998 vice‑mayoralty election in Makati City; the board of canvassers’ returns showed Manzano with 103,853 votes, Mercado with 100,894, and Daza with 54,275. Proclamation of the winner was suspended because Ernesto Mamaril filed a disqualification petition alleging Manzano was a U.S. citizen.
On May 7, 1998 the COMELEC Second Division granted Mamaril’s petition and cancelled Manzano’s certificate of candidacy for being a dual citizen under Section 40(d) of the Local Government Code (R.A. No. 7160); Manzano moved for reconsideration on May 8, 1998. Pursuant to Omnibus Resolution No. 3044 (May 10, 1998), the board of canvassers tabulated votes but suspended proclamation. Petitioner sought to intervene in the disqualification proceedings on May 19–20, 1998; his motion was opposed and left unresolved.
On August 31, 1998 the COMELEC en banc, voting 4–1 with one abstention, reversed the Second Division, held Manzano had effectively elected Philippine citizenship and was qualified, and directed the Makati board of canvassers to reconvene and proclaim Manzano; the board proclaimed him that evening. Mercado filed a petition for certiorari in the Supreme Court seeking to set aside the COMELEC en banc resolution and to have Manzano declared disqualified. The Solicitor General sided with Mercado on the substantive point that dual allegiance/disqualification should apply. The petition raised, inter alia, (A) whether Manzano had renounced U...(Pro-only)
Issues:
- Does petitioner Mercado have legal personality to challenge the COMELEC en banc resolution (i.e., was he entitled to intervene and thus to question the denial of his motion for intervention)?
- Whether being a mere dual citizen (as opposed to having dual allegiance) renders a person disqualified under Section 40(d) of the Local Government Code.
- Whether private respondent Manzano effectively renounced his U.S. citizenship (by voting, by prior acts, or by filing his certificate of candidacy) so as to remove any disqualification.
- Whether the Second Division’s May 7, 1998 resolution was final at the time of the election so that Mercado could be procla...(Pro-only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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