Digest.ph

The case involves a petition for habeas corpus filed by Willie Yu seeking his release from detention. The Court denied the petition and resolved issues regarding the jurisdiction of the Commission on Immigration and Deportation (CID) over a naturalized Filipino citizen and the validity of Yu's warrantless arrest and detention. Yu filed a motion for reconsideration, which was denied. He then filed a motion for clarification and a motion for release from arbitrary detention. The Court issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) to prevent Yu's immediate deportation. The CID filed a motion to lift the TRO, and Yu filed a reply. The Court gave Yu three days to explain and prove why he should still be considered a citizen of the Philippines despite his acquisition and use of a Portuguese passport. Yu's compliance revealed that he had obtained a Portuguese passport and declared his nationality as Portuguese in commercial documents. The Court concluded that these acts constituted an express renunciation of Yu's Philippine citizenship acquired through naturalization. The Court denied Yu's motion for release from detention and granted the CID's motion to lift the TRO.

Philippine citizenship is not a commodity to be displayed when required and suppressed when convenient. Express renunciation of Philippine citizenship requires a distinct and explicit renunciation, not left to inference or implication.