On the surface, this case appears confusing and highly politicized. Anyone familiar with the Philippines knows what is actually going on there?
Hello bro, actually Alice Guo is guilty of both especially lying about her nationality while running for public office. What makes it politicized is that a sitting senator Sherwin Gatchalian whose father is also guilty of the same crime BUT is able to escape persecution by bribing the immigration officials and of the supreme court.
The "Gatchalian father Filipino citizen issue" refers to
William Gatchalian, the father of Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, and a long-standing legal battle over his citizenship status in the Philippines. The matter was definitively settled by the Philippine Supreme Court in a 1991 decision that declared him a Filipino citizen.
Background and Legal Proceedings
- Arrival and Initial Admission: William Gatchalian arrived in the Philippines as a minor in 1961 and was initially admitted as a Filipino citizen by a Board of Special Inquiry.
- Exclusion Order and Appeals: In 1962, a new Board of Commissioners reversed this decision and ordered his exclusion, alleging he was a Chinese citizen. This sparked years of legal challenges and administrative reviews.
- Supreme Court Ruling: In the case Board of Commissioners v. Joselito Dela Rosa (G.R. Nos. 95122-23), the Supreme Court, in its May 31, 1991 decision, resolved the issue in his favor.
- Basis of the Decision: The court found that William Gatchalian followed the citizenship of his father (William's grandfather, Santiago Gatchalian), whose Philippine citizenship had been recognized by the Bureau of Immigration in 1960. The decision permanently enjoined the Bureau of Immigration from continuing deportation proceedings against him, as he was legally recognized as a Filipino citizen.
Later Challenges and Political Context
The citizenship issue resurfaced years later, primarily in the context of the political careers of his children, including Senator Sherwin Gatchalian.
- In 2001, an election protest was filed against a Gatchalian scion, arguing that even with the Supreme Court's ruling, he was not a natural-born citizen and thus ineligible for the House of Representatives. This was based on an interpretation of the 1987 Constitution, which requires members of Congress to be natural-born citizens.
- Senator Sherwin Gatchalian has stated that he would not have been allowed to run and win multiple elections if he were not a Filipino citizen, maintaining that he is a natural-born Filipino. The Supreme Court has previously held that questions of citizenship are generally not subject to relitigation unless specific criteria are met.
More recently, Senator Gatchalian has himself been a prominent figure in questioning the citizenship of former Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo, in a case involving alleged links to illegal POGO activities and fraudulent late birth registrations.
The mistake of Alice Gou is that she didn't pay the right amount and miss her opportunity.