Support reproductive health
So it came to pass that last September 30, Tuesday, at 4 p.m., I went to Congress to show support for the Reproductive Health Bill (HB5043). And I must say, it was a very good day. I was really glad to see that our side (the pro-RH Bill side) filled Congress galleries to the rafters.
I’d say we were almost a thousand all in all. People from all walks of life — dressed in Filipiniana or in purple, urban poor, urban rich, young, old, men, women, gay, straight—all showed up to make it known that the RH Bill’s time has finally come.
As for the opposing side, their contingent was rather sparse and lifeless. The anti-RH Bill section was half empty in their upper galleries, occupied by mostly tired-looking ladies in blue and white uniforms from some league of Catholic women or something. Oh, and of course, some hakots they bussed in to fill space. Our side was definitely more diverse, energetic and passionate about the issue.
Unfortunately though, and unsurprisingly, some freak show named Rep. Raul del Mar from Cebu kept “suspending” the session because of a technicality. He cited that the pro-RH people’s use of a PowerPoint presentation was an “underhanded” tactic to undermine the process or something like that.
All in all, because of his whining and grandstanding, nothing was debated and the debates were moved to either Oct. 3 or after Nov. 10.
Golly gee, Mr. Del Mar, thanks for wasting taxpayers’ time and money. Why are you so afraid of us? Are you afraid that your theocratic nonsense can’t stand up to logic and scientific fact?
That said, it was a good day because it’s now become obvious that our side now has the numbers (in the galleries, the Pulse Asia polls, in Congress) and the opposing side has now become so desperate that they are resorting to delaying tactics to avoid losing the game, which I feel they will.
And on my ‘I SUPPORT THE REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH BILL’ Facebook page, even folks like Lea Salonga, Manny Castañeda, John Silva, Ria Tanjuatco Trillo, and Jim Libiran, have joined the ranks of Cherie Gil and Lisa Macuja when it comes to this issue.
But let’s not pop the champagne open yet. RH hasn’t been passed into law yet. And who knows what might be done between now and then to undermine our momentum. After all, it’s more than apparent that the other side does not like playing fair. We must keep this pro-RH momentum going till it’s passed in the next session. Now is not the time to slack off.
Stay tuned...
