Why compromise on RH bill? Lagman explains

Carlos Santamaria

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RH bill sponsor Edcel Lagman thinks enough amendments have already been introduced to the bill

ENOUGH AMENDMENTS ALREADY, says Albay Rep. and RH bill sponsor Edcel Lagman

MANILA, Philippines – Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman said Saturday, September 8, advocates of the Reproductive Health (RH) bill in the House of Representatives have no choice but to consider the proposed amendments to the controversial bill so it can be approved.

“The intransigence of those opposed to the RH bill has torpedoed the forging of a viable and reasonable compromise on the measure,” Lagman, the bill’s principal author, said in a statement.

“The House of Representatives has been left with no option but to proceed considering the proposed amendments in order to pave the way for final voting,” he added.

Bill ‘acceptable to majority of Filipinos’

According to the congressman, prior to the proposed amendments, the RH bill “has been acceptable to the overwhelming majority of Filipinos as documented consistently by periodic surveys with 71% of Catholics endorsing the enactment of the bill.”

But anti-RH groups and their supporters in the House have done everything in their power to delay the vote.

Lagman noted that the is “the Catholic hierarchy and their congressional allies” and not the Filipino people who deem the bill “unacceptable” in spite of the numerous amendments already introduced to address the objections and concerns of the Church.

Moreover, “the enactment of the RH bill has been inordinately temporized at the expense of the multitude of expectant beneficiaries from the poor and marginalized sectors,” he said.

Lagman added that he hopes the legislative process will soon come to an end in a final voting “so that Filipinos will find out whether their representatives in Congress are guardians of the people’s will or centurions of Church orthodoxy.”

Temporarily shelved

The House has temporarily shelved the RH bill to prioritize the passage of the P2.006-trillion government budget for 2013. It won’t likely be tackled again until October, after the filing of certificates of candidacies for the 2013 elections.

House leaders maintain there’s time to pass the RH bill until December 2012.

Otherwise, the bill will go back to square one after the May 2013 elections. Unfortunately, this has been its fate for more than a decade now – Rappler.com

For more updates on the issue of the RH Bill, view our #RHBill Debate Microsite

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