Benhur clarifies his signing of RH Bill

CEBU, Philippines - Cebu fourth district Rep. Benhur Salimbangon clarified that his signing of the controversial Reproductive Health Care Bill doesn’t mean he is already in favor of such measure.

“When I signed that bill, ang advocacy nga ma-discuss ang problema,” Salimbangon said.

One of the issues Salimbangon found necessary for discussion is overpopulation since the Church did not state if there is really a problem on that. Another is the issue on unwanted pregnancy, which the legislator said, seems to be entrusted by Church to God the consequence of adopting natural method of birth control.

Salimbangon admitted he noticed there are more children in the countryside than in the urban places, citing he even knew of a couple who have 32 children in just one mother.

The House of Representatives is set to tackle in the plenary the RH Bill after the committee on family planning and population development submitted it for discussion.

Advocates of the RH Bill in Cebu prepare for a nationwide conference on Thursday, March 17.

The advocates said the gathering was meant to disprove the claim of the Catholic Church that majority of Cebuanos are against the proposed legislation and to help Catholics make an informed decision in making a stand on the controversial proposal.

Expected to attend are health workers, members of the academe, representatives from non-government and women’s organizations and even some members of the church.

A survey by The Forum for Family Planning and Development, Inc., said nine of 10 respondents in Cebu agree to limit the number of children because doing so would benefit the health of the mother and children themselves.

Ninety-four percent of the respondents in Cebu are reportedly Roman Catholic, 80 percent of whom reportedly said the local government unit should have a policy on reproductive health and family planning.

There were 600 respondents in the survey, male and female, all of whom were of reproductive age.

The nationwide conference will be beamed via teleconference simultaneous in Manila, Baguio, Cebu, Davao, Tacloban.

The RH Bill aims to guarantee universal access to methods and information on birth control and maternal care. — (FREEMAN)