Friday, September 26, 2008 Students voice on RH bill By Annabelle L. Ricalde
ADDING their voice to the already tumultuous debate on the controversial Reproductive Health (RH) bill, the students of Xavier University-Ateneo de Cagayan de Oro voiced Thursday their support for the Catholic Church’s opposition to the proposed law.
Arbie Llesis, president of XU Central Student Government (CSG), called on Albay Representative Edcel Lagman, the bill's primary author, to reconsider the measure.
In a forum Thursday, Llesis and other student leaders said the RH bill is riddled with transparency problems since the youth sector was not consulted when the proposed law was being crafted.
As one of the major stakeholders of the RH bill, she said it was improper for Lagman and other drafters to exclude their voices “despite the fact that we are the ones affected by it.”
The bill, she said, does not promote holistic programs to address problems such as teenage pregnancy and instead short-circuited by offering birth control pills and procedures.
"There are a lot of things that government should first prioritize, among them is improvement of education. Majority of our schools lack books, chairs and even classrooms," Llesis said, noting that the government spends P2 to P5 billion annually for contraceptives.
She also echoed the Church’s stance that corruption in the government is the root cause of poverty—not the over population.
Earlier, Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said there was no need to "crack the whip" on the administration allies in Congress on the RH bill.
He said the Palace will leave the legislators to make their decision independently.
