This is an appeal by the government from  a decision of the Court of First Instance of Antique, granting two separate petitions for naturalization of the brothers, Raymundo Pe and Fortunato Pe.

Raymundo Pe and Fortunato Pe filed separate petitions for naturalization in the Antique court.  Attached to each petition were  the affidavits  of  the  same two  character witnesses, Panfilo Chua and Gerardo Agravante.  The opposition filed by the provincial fiscal  was based on the ground that the applicants did not have the qualifications required by law.  After due publication  of the petitions, and after  a joint hearing,  the  trial rendered  separate decisions granting the two  petitions  for naturalization. As already stated,  the provincial fiscal  appealed from said decisions.

The trial court found that both brothers  possessed all the qualifications and  none of  the disqualifications  for naturalization.   Among the court's findings are the following:  Both Raymundo and Fortunato, 26 years old and 25 years old  respectively,  were born in  Guisijan,  Laua-an, Antique, and were baptized  at the Aglipayan Church of that barrio.  They finished their  elementary course at the Laua-an Elementary School,  and  the secondary course, at the Central Philippine College, recognized by the government.  They both studied at  the Mapua Institute of Technology from where  Raymundo obtained  an Engineering degree. Fortunato, at the time of the hearing, was a 3rd year mechanical  engineering student.  Raymundo is  now employed as manager of the Davao branch of the National Merchandizing  Corporation at a  salary of P300 a month. He has P5,500  in the bank.  Fortunato is employed  as a salesman of the Vimes Trading Corporation  in Manila, with a salary of P150 a month.   He has P4,000 deposited in the bank.   The two brothers had always resided in Laua-an, Antique, except when they studied in Manila, although in  1936 they went to visit their grandmother in China and  returned to Antique in 1938.   They both speak and write English and Visayan and a little Tagalog.  They have  mingled  socially  with  Filipinos  and have adopted Filipino ways and customs.

The only ground of the appeal of the government is that at the hearing,  only one of the character witnesses named Gerardo Agravante, testified  for the applicants.  In place of Panfilo Chua, the other character witness whose affidavit was attached to the two  petitions, Provincial Governor Calixto O. Zaldivar of Antique, testified for the applicants. He said that he had known the two brothers since 1934 specially since he was a  member of the faculty of the Central Philippine College, when they were students there and he vouched  for their good character.   It is the theory of  the  government  that the affidavits of  character  witnesses attached  to a petition of  naturalization form part of  the  application  and  that to  substitute witnesses for any or both  of said character witnesses to testify at the hearing, would be amending the application;  and that, furthermore, to  do that, would be to deprive the government of the opportunity to check up on the new witnesses, find out their background and  determine whether they really were in a position to know the applicants so as to be  able to vouch  for their good character.

We realize  that  in previous naturalization cases,  this court has held that the two character  witnesses required by  law, whose affidavits should be attached to the application for naturalization,  must be presented to  testify at the trial, unless there is some valid reason why they or anyone of them  could not testify, and in case of a justified change  or substitution, the new witness or witnesses must be competent.   In the present case, the reason why character witness  as Panfilo Chua could  not  testify at the hearing was because he died shortly before said hearing. That  certainly was a valid excuse.  The government could not well allege that it had no time to check up on the new or  substitute witness so as  to determine his background and his opportunity to know the applicants and his competency as  a witness  because as already  stated, he  was the Provincial Governor of the province,  well known, and whose competency and  background could not be doubted. Moreover,  at the hearing, the provincial fiscal,  in representation of the government, did not raise any  objection to the substitution of witnesses and to Governor Zaldivar taking  the witness  stand.  On  the  contrary,  he cross examined the witness.   From all this,  we are  satisfied that  there has  been  a  substantial  compliance with the requirements of  the law.^[1]

In view of the foregoing, the appealed decisions granting the  petitions for naturalization of Raymundo Pe and Fortunato Pe, are hereby  affirmed.  No costs.

Paras, C.  J.,  Bengzon,  Reyes,  A., Bautista  Angelo, Labrador, Concepcion, Reyes, J. B.  L., and Endencia, JJ., concur.

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^[1] Leon Pe m.  Republic of the Philippines, 97 Phil.  792.