Pro-RH forum’s surprising ending: more doubts about the bill

• Tweet
• Pin It

MANILA, September 1, 2012 — In an unexpected turn of events, a pro-RH forum moderated by talk show host Boy Abunda last Thursday raised more questions about the validity of arguments supporting the bill instead of cementing their soundness.

In ending, the host himself, celebrity and UN Population Fund and Plan Philippines ambassador Boy Abunda, admitted he was open to “review” his pro-RH stance.

“Am I open to a review? Yes! Am I open to a discussion? Yes!”, he said as the forum drew to a close.

A highly interactive discussion with Polytechnic University of the Philippines (PUP) students revealed that some students, at least those who asked questions during the open forum, had serious doubts about the bill.

One student asked whether the RH Bill is still needed, considering the existence of the Philippine Magna Carta of Women, which already has provisions on maternal health.

A participant also asked the forum’s panelists, student council presidents from Colegio de San Juan de Letran, Sanggunian ng mga Mag-aaral ng mga Paaralang Loyola ng Ateneo de Manila and De La Salle University (DLSU) to comment on 10,000 pending lawsuits against manufacturers of contraceptives in the US and Canada.

Students from the decidedly militant Polytechnic University of the Philippines also listen to Prof. Xiao Chua of DLSU discuss induced abortion statistics in the country.

Another uncanny question from a psychology student of the decidedly militant PUP was whether the RH Bill would be able to form the “virtues” of young people.

After admitting that there are a lot of premises connected to the issue that merit more study, Abunda ended the forum by encouraging some 200 PUP students to learn more about the issue.

“I will not claim absolute expertise on the bill, but I am ready to talk about my pro-RH stand,” he said as he concluded the “Usapang Seksualidad” forum.

Letran Student Council President Barry Codera, DLSU Student Government Executive President Jana Cabuhat and Sanggunian ng Ateneo External Affairs Chairperson Moses Albiento were also asked to discuss their student councils’ pro-RH stands.

The “Usapang Seksualidad” forum was organized by the Forum for Family Planning and Development and KILOS-PUP.[Nirva’ana Ella Delacruz]

6 Comments

1. 

   jiggo santos

   September 1, 2012 at 3:00 pm

   nakakatawa lang na ang letran student council president ay pro rh… hindi na siguro nya kabisado ang mission ng letran… staunch defender of the church… sayang lang… ginamit pa ang pangalan ng letran…

   Reply
   • 

     Nirva Delacruz

     September 2, 2012 at 6:31 am

     I think it is admirable that young as they are, they desire to be involved in the issue. But just as I personally told them during the forum, the RH Bill is more complex than what popular arguments supporting it show. I think there was a general agreement among them that more fora about the issue is needed.

     Reply
2. 

   AGUEDO FLORENCE JALIN JR

   September 1, 2012 at 8:16 pm

   STUDENTS’ FORA ARE REALLY OF GREAT IMPORTANCE FOR BOTH ANTI AND PRO RH TO CLARIFY ISSUES HUNTING THE WOMEN WELFARE AND THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF OUR COUNTRY. THE ATTITUDE SHOULD BE LIKE THAT OF BOY ABUNDA, “TO LEARN MORE.” THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS TO UNRAVEL AND THEREFORE MORE TIME SHOULD BE DEDICATED. LET US NOT HURRY TO PUT A SOLUTION TO THE INCREASING NUMBER OF CHILDREN OR ENDING POVERTY BECAUSE WE MIGHT BE PUTTING ASIDE THE SOLUTIONS THAT SHOULD BE THE FOCUS OF EVERYTHING. LET US ALLOW SCIENTIFIC FACTS TO EDUCATE US ABOUT THE ADVERSE EFFECTS OF THE THINGS WE WANT TO PROCURE NOT BECAUSE WE HATE THEM BUT BECAUSE THEY REALLY DO SOMETHING WRONG. let us allow truth to set us free.

   Reply
   • 

     Nirva Delacruz

     September 2, 2012 at 6:32 am

     I agree. I also believe that a stand should be arrived at urgenly, while constantly challenging it with findings, research and verified statistics.

     Reply
3. 

   Gailbert vito bosea

   September 4, 2012 at 5:22 am

   wow ah!!!

   Reply
   • 

     YP

     September 9, 2012 at 11:59 am

     cool, right? people can study it, analyze the issue and it will lead them to truth..

     Reply