COMMENTARY: Who is a resident of the Philippines? | Opinion | GMA News Online

See - COMMENTARY: Who is a resident of the Philippines? | Opinion | GMA News Online





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The Supreme Court has resolved the meaning of "resident" for purposes of complying with the constitutional requirement.  A resident is a domiciliary; and therefore, for purposes of complying with the requirements of the Constitution, one must be domiciled in the Philippines for the period that the constitution requires.
 
Domicile has a fixed meaning: habitual residence coupled with the intention to remain -- what is technically called animus manendi.  In Conflict of Laws, also known as Private International Law, domicile requires physical presence and the intention to remain (for good).
 
If I pack all my bags, sell all I have in the Philippines, announce to all and sundry my intention to relocate to the to the icy heart of Greenland, and there, spend the rest of my days, but die before I board the plane on the first leg of my journey away from the civilized world, I shall die as a domiciliary of the Philippines because the requirement of physical presence in the wastelands of Greenland has not been fulfilled.
 
By contrast, even if one is sentenced to suffer life imprisonment, Muntinlupa does not become one's domicile because one always hopes for executive clemency, and maintains the intention to return to his home.
 
So, is absence consistent with domicile? Yes, as long as there is the animus revertendi.  When one leaves his domicile with the intention to return, no matter how long the absence, domicile will not be lost.
 
So, when the Constitution requires "residence of at least one year," then what is required is physical presence for at least one year with intention to remain in the Philippines, or in that congressional district or locality, for one year. 



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