The position adopted by Associate Justice Antonio Carpio that Grace Poe needs to prove that she is a natural born citizen is legally unsound and discriminatory.

What is dumbfounding is categorizing Grace Poe among those with “naturalized status”.

If Grace Poe is one with naturalized status, what process did she undergo to acquire Philippine citizenship after she was born?

What then was Grace Poe’s former citizenship at birth,  that she had to be ‘naturalized’?

Is there any other definition of what naturalization is?

We favor the position that there must be presumption that a foundling like Grace Poe is natural born citizen.

Making her prove her natural born status only discriminates against all foundlings.

Instead, it should be those questioning Grace Poe’s natural born status who should prove that she is not.

Imagine, Carpio was  amenable to the traumatic and expensive process of having to call possible blood relatives and subject them to DNA testing, just to establish Grace Poe’s natural born status.

Without any evidence presented to the contrary regarding her natural born status, Grace Poe should be presumed  natural born.

The position adopted by the SET is making it more difficult for foundlings to be given the opportunity to run for public office whose qualifications require a natural born status.

It discriminates.

Justice Carpio said that the issue of citizenship is not final and can be raised anytime.

There is therefore a chance that with Grace Poe submitting  results of her DNA test it would ultimately sway the SET in ruling that she is indeed a natural born citizen.

But that is not the point.

The point is, by placing the burden upon the foundling to establish her natural born status, the SET has adopted discriminatory posture against those whose only fault in this world was to suffer the misfortune of having once been unwanted and abandoned by their biological parents

That is wrong. (By Atty. Jay Dejaresco)