Presidential bets weigh in on RH bill

Presidential candidates on Friday addressed queries from a 3,000-strong audience at the De La Salle University-Manila on the Reproductive Health (RH) bill, which has elicited some controversy due to adamant opposition from the Catholic Church. The RH bill, or An Act Providing for a National Policy on Reproductive Health, Responsible Parenthood and Population Development, has long been pending in the Congress. The Lower House version proposes, among others, mandatory age-appropriate reproductive health education starting in Grade 5, and the purchase of contraceptives by state hospitals as part of its essential medicines and supplies. Its Senate version, Senate Bill 3122, is also up for interpellation. The RH bill pushes for both natural and artificial contraceptives and has been slammed by the Catholic Church, which espouses only natural family planning methods. Aquino wants to tap Church participation Liberal Party standard bearer Senator Benigno Aquino III, in addressing the De La Salle students, said that he promoted “responsible parenthood." He explained that “each parent must be reminded that they have the responsibility" to secure the future of their children, adding that there are some provisions of the bill that “he cannot support." Aquino encouraged the “honing of a moral conscience" instead, as well as the tapping of the Church’s participation in educating the public. He said that he has been mistakenly tagged as a supporter of the bill, and clarified that he just served as interpellator during deliberations, not a proponent. Aquino pointed out that while the Constitution is clear on the separation of Church and State, he said that the state “cannot dictate," but merely “remind" couples of their responsibilities. Villar blames mismanaged economy Senator Manuel Villar, another front-running presidential bet just behind Senator Aquino in poll surveys, is on the other hand openly opposed to the controversial bill, blaming an incompetent economic management instead for the country's woes. “I have always believed that a huge population is not necessarily the problem. It is the competence in managing the economy," he said. Villar, projecting the image of a self-made entrepreneur who rose from poverty, went on to criticize previous administrations’ “inability to spur economic growth." This, he theorized, resulted in the ballooning population of poor people. “We have never used managerial ability [for a president] before… We have been managed in a very incompetent manner these past 50 years," said Villar. De los Reyes on promiscuity For his part, Olongapo City councilor JC De Los Reyes, the youngest of the candidates, slammed the pending RH bill for its premise of overpopulation, which he said was “wrong." “The RH bill promotes promiscuity and infidelity," de los Reyes said, adding that contraceptive commodities being promoted are unsafe for women. De los Reyes also asserted his disapproval of sex education in schools, particularly the modules being distributed by the Department of Education (DepEd). He claimed that the modules “seem to be teaching" students how to use contraceptives such as condoms and pills. “The youth are aware enough of possible consequences [of premarital sex]," de los Reyes said in Filipino. “In our current educational setup, it is risky for teachers to do the teaching." De los Reyes further reiterated that sex education is a parent’s responsibility. Other presidential bets say their piece Bro. Eddie Villanueva was asked to choose between state laws and church laws, which one to uphold. The popular evangelist said that he will uphold “the rule of God above anything else." Former Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, who has not been fielded the same question, earlier withdrew his support for the RH bill, advocating “moral choice" instead. Senators Richard Gordon of the Bagumbayan party list and independent candidate Nicanor Perlas had earlier expressed reservations on some of the bill’s provisions. The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines earlier warned presidential candidates who are supporters of the bill against losing votes from the Catholic voting populace. - FVI/JV, GMANews.TV