The RH Debate: Are you pro or anti?

MANILA, Philippines - Putting the spotlight on one of the country’s most divisive issues, GMA News TV brings to the table the differing sides on the Reproductive Health Bill now pending in Congress via The Grand Debate.

The STAR had a sneak peek into the impassioned face-off when it was taped last Tuesday, with news anchor Mel Tiangco serving as host and moderator. Lending assistance to Tiangco were GMA News TV personalities Pia Arcangel and RJ Ledesma, who were debaters themselves during their collegiate years.

Some of the most prominent pro and anti-RH Bill frontliners from the religious, women and government sectors were tapped as debaters and interrogators. Supporters came in full force as well, including boxing champ and Saranggani Rep. Manny Pacquiao, who has had expressed his willingness to be the poster boy of the anti-RH campaign.

The GMA News TV special is slated for broadcast on Sunday, May 22, from 8:45 to 10:45 p.m.

The debaters squared off on three subtopics: Is the RH Bill moral or immoral? Is the RH Bill good or not for the good of women? Will the RH Bill help solve or not solve the problem of poverty in the country?

Each debater presented his/her side within a given limited time, followed by an interpellation.

Championing the RH Bill were Bishop Efraim Tendero of the Philippine Council for Evangelical Churches, celebrity mom Pia Arroyo-Magalona and Iloilo Rep. Janette Garin.

Rallying the anti-RH stand were Catholic Bishop Teodoro Bacani, Prof. Aliza Racelis of the University of the Philippines, and Zambales Rep. Mitos Magsaysay.

Comprising the panel of interrogators were Carlos Celdran, Risa Hontiveros-Baraquel and Dr. Sylvia Claudio for pro-RH, while the anti-RH had Catholic bishop Deogracias Iñiguez, Dean Antonio Torralba and Dr. Deane Campo-Cruz. 

Audience participation also figured in as GMA News TV included comments and questions sent online.

And the highlights and sidelights of the debate?

Rep. Magsaysay said that the RH Bill is not the ultimate solution to poverty, adding that existing laws, particularly on maternal healthcare, can already address 80 percent of the provisions in the RH Bill. She said that focus has to be directed at education and equipping Filipinos with skills to earn them employment. Magsaysay further reasoned, “How will they rise from poverty if you just give them condoms?”

RH Bill co-author Rep. Garin, on the other hand, countered: “Sinasabi ng mga anti-RH bill na pro-life daw sila. The pro-RH Bill advocates are pro-quality life.”

There was also an interesting exchange of views between Bishop Bacani and Carlos Celdran. To recall, the latter — a cultural activist and performance artist — staged a protest action last year inside the Manila Cathedral dressed as the national hero Jose Rizal against the Church’s opposition to the RH Bill.

Meanwhile, the pound-for-pound king Pacquiao, fresh from his victory over Shane Mosley in Las Vegas on May 8, also made an appearance to make an anti-RH pitch, explaining that the bill goes against his beliefs as a Catholic and that as a legislator, battling corruption should be the priority instead.

The RH Bill (otherwise known as HB 4244), which has fanned a contentious national debate, seeks to guarantee universal access to methods and information on birth control and promote education of students on reproductive health, among others, according to its proponents.

Catch the rest of the viewpoints during the Sunday airing of RH Bill: The Grand Debate on GMA News TV.