FVR blames Arroyo for population, poverty woes

MANILA, Philippines — Former President Fidel V. Ramos on Friday blamed President Arroyo’s flip-flopping population policy and "unwarranted subservience" to the Roman Catholic Church for the country’s swelling population and worsening poverty. Speaking on the occasion of World Population Day at the EDSA-Shangrila in Mandaluyong, Ramos said Arroyo’s flip-flopping and subservience are unfortunate because the Philippine population growth rate is among the highest in the world, “translating to three babies being born every minute - unintended, even unwanted." Bowing to pressures from the Roman Catholic Church, Arroyo has removed funding for the government's family planning program. On Thursday, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) vowed to block the proposed Reproductive Health Bill pending in Congress, saying it is “antilife." The is unfortunate, Ramos said, because the country's population now stands at 88.5 million. "Are we not a nation of diverse faiths and beliefs? Any Philippine president must represent the interest and welfare of Filipinos - regardless of what religion he or she may profess. The president must be the leader of all the people - and not just of the majority," he asked. "PGMA's (Arroyo's) ambiguousness has hurt the cause of proper family planning in this country. Since she has a doctorate in economics, we can assume she knows the political economy of contraception, both natural and artificial," Ramos added. He said the national government should urgently revise its family planning program if poverty is to be addressed seriously. He said numerous research have been conducted in the 1960s and 1980s and a common conclusion was that "rapid population growth was more likely to hinder than to foster economic development." Recalling his term as president from 1992 to 1998, Ramos said the Department of Health had actively promoted both the artificial and natural methods of birth control. For his part, Commission on Population executive director Tomas Osias said that population management could be an important strategy to minimize the impacts of the economic crisis facing the country. He said if a couple observes the three to five-year birth spacing, there will be time for the mother to recover her health and to help in augmenting the family's income. "In the ultimate analysis, it's the couple that will decide so it is important for them to know and learn all these different methods, whether scientific or artificial planning methods. Dr. William Padolina, deputy director general of the International Rice Research Institute, meantime said that for additional one million mouths to feed, the country's production of milled rice must increase by 134,000 metric tons of rice every year. With the present population of 88.5 million, the total demand per year is 11.8 million metric tons of rice. "Because populations are still growing, it is essential to produce more rice," Padolina said. - GMANews.TV