EN BANC
[G.R. No. L-3920. November 20, 1951. ]
LUISA LIM, Petitioner-Appellee, v. REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES, Oppositor-Appellant.
Solicitor General Pompeyo Diaz and Solicitor Isidro C. Borromeo, for Oppositor-Appellant.
Isidro Acuram, for Petitioner-Appellee.
SYLLABUS
1. NATURALIZATION; REQUIREMENT AS TO OCCUPATION. — A mere student lacks the legal qualification of having a lucrative trade or profession or occupation.
D E C I S I O N
BENGZON, J.:
The court of first instance of Bohol approved the application for naturalization of the appellee Luisa Lim, by an order dated April 14, 1950.
The Solicitor-General appealed, contending that said applicant does not possess all the qualifications to become a Philippine citizen because, (a) she has no known lucrative trade or profession or lawful occupation and (b) she is not able to speak and write any one of the principal national languages.
Under the Revised Naturalization Law (Commonwealth Act No. 473) one of the essential qualifications of a would-be citizen is that he or she must own real estate worth not less than P5,000 or must have "some known lucrative trade or profession or lawful occupation."
Luisa Lim admitted she owned no landed property. Concerning her occupation, she declared she was a student of pharmacy of the University of San Carlos, Cebu City. This, the Solicitor-General argues, does not meet the abovementioned legal requirement. On the other hand appellee’s attorney maintains that "to study pharmacy is a lawful occupation," although it is not a lucrative trade or profession.
Supposing that a student is engaged in a lawful occupation within the meaning of Commonwealth Act No. 473, such occupation however is not "lucrative." Observe that under the law the applicant must have a lucrative trade or a lucrative profession or a lucrative lawful occupation, because the adjective "lucrative" modifies "trade", "profession" and "occupation." The Spanish text confirms this view. It says, "tener alg
The Solicitor-General appealed, contending that said applicant does not possess all the qualifications to become a Philippine citizen because, (a) she has no known lucrative trade or profession or lawful occupation and (b) she is not able to speak and write any one of the principal national languages.
Under the Revised Naturalization Law (Commonwealth Act No. 473) one of the essential qualifications of a would-be citizen is that he or she must own real estate worth not less than P5,000 or must have "some known lucrative trade or profession or lawful occupation."
Luisa Lim admitted she owned no landed property. Concerning her occupation, she declared she was a student of pharmacy of the University of San Carlos, Cebu City. This, the Solicitor-General argues, does not meet the abovementioned legal requirement. On the other hand appellee’s attorney maintains that "to study pharmacy is a lawful occupation," although it is not a lucrative trade or profession.
Supposing that a student is engaged in a lawful occupation within the meaning of Commonwealth Act No. 473, such occupation however is not "lucrative." Observe that under the law the applicant must have a lucrative trade or a lucrative profession or a lucrative lawful occupation, because the adjective "lucrative" modifies "trade", "profession" and "occupation." The Spanish text confirms this view. It says, "tener alg
