Canadian vlogger Kyle Jennermann shares why he wants to become a Filipino citizen

Canadian vlogger Kyle Jennermann is almost officially a Filipino after the House of Representatives approved a bill granting him citizenship on Wednesday.

But with so many Pinoys wanting to become citizens of Canada or other countries, why would Kyle want to do the opposite?

In Mark Salazar's report on "24 Oras," Wednesday, Kyle shared some of the experiences that made him want to be a Filipino. Among them is an encounter with a family after Typhoon Yolanda hit in 2013.

"They were hanging out, and I made chika with them. We were having laughs. It was just a lot of happiness and beauty, but then I asked them right before we left what they were doing, and they said we are digging for our dead lola under this boat," he said.

He also gave another example of Pinoy commuters on the jeepney.

"Look at how you ride the jeepney. What do you do? You pass the money to each other. You trust each other to pass up to the driver—simple things like that simply build and build and build in me," he said.

When asked if he has ever had a bad experience in the Philippines, he admitted that he has.

"But guess what? Do they have any right to overshadow the huge sum of massive beautiful experiences? No," he said.

Kyle has lived in the Philippines for 10 years, with three years spent in Cagayan de Oro.

"I thought I was going to just stay for a week, and sure enough, three years later, I'm still there, and I'm unofficially adopted to my titos, titas in factora family in Cagayan de Oro," he said, about to tear up.

"I don't want to be too emotional right now, but they deeply touched me as a person and really locally taught me so much about the country," he added.

However, it took a long time for Kyle's parents to come to terms with his decision to become a Filipino citizen, but they recently sent a note that stated they are proud of their son and "his Filipino life."

That left Kyle teary eyed.

Kyle is now awaiting the approval of the Senate for his citizenship to be official. The vlogger also thanked Congress for supporting his citizenship journey.

Laguna Representative Marlyn Alonte authored House Bill 7185 that kicked off Kyle's Filipino citizenship process. Alonte did it because Kyle promotes the Philippines and its scenic spots on his YouTube channel, "Becoming Filipino," which has over one million subscribers.

—Kimberly Tsao/MGP, GMA Integrated News