Gibo on changed RH stand: ‘You have to please disparate sectors’

Lakas-Kampi-CMD presidential bet Gilberto Teodoro Jr. on Wednesday said he is now advocating “moral choice" on the Reproductive Health (RH) issue “to please disparate sectors"—after saying months ago that he would keep supporting certain RH bill provisions despite incurring the Church’s ire. Teodoro said his decision to change his stance on House Bill 5043 or the RH bill was “a practical matter" since the debate on the measure “has created more division than harmony." “You have to please disparate sectors. You cannot make something succeed if there is massive opposition against it. That’s the practical reality of things," he told reporters in an interview after a forum in Manila. Teodoro likewise said the government should “let the moral guardians make the enlightened moral choice" on RH issues. “With a problem so close to the bedroom such as this, we must work with each other. The government should be neutral and committed to support a moral choice," he said. Teodoro also said he foresees practical problems in the government's implementation of the RH bill. “It’s a question of practicability and implementability of the program. What if we pass the RH bill and we have zero budget for it? (That would only yield) failed expectations," he said. Teodoro, who said last September that he would not withdraw his support for the RH bill despite the Church’s opposition, backtracked earlier this month, saying the measure may not yield the solution to the problem of runaway population growth. (See: Gibo says Church's ire won't deter his support for RH bill) The Church has repeatedly said in the past that it would campaign against candidates who support the RH bill. Mum on contraception When asked about his stand on the use of contraceptives, Teodoro did not give a categorical answer despite his earlier stance that he does not agree with the enforced belief that contraception is bad. “That is up to you to counsel… I will respect what you counsel your patient," he told a doctor from the Philippine General Hospital who asked whether or not the presidential aspirant is in favor of the use of condoms. Teodoro said he believes the acceptable solution to the country’s population problems is proper education. “The solutions are simple but hard to implement. Number one, education to all Filipinos by their respective moral guardians. Number two, we have to make migration stop," he said. Teodoro also proposed giving conditional cash transfers to poor couples who will not have a birth within a year. “The government should respect the moral choice and the government should provide the resources to support this moral choice," he said. – Andreo C. Calonzo/JV, GMANews.TV