Gov’t fund sought for parties with more women candidates

MANILA, Philippines – Although the Philippines is considered as the most gender equal country in Southeast Asia – and the 5th most gender equal country in the world – having more women in key government positions remains to be a work in progress. 

Two Akbayan representatives want to address this gender gap by challenging political parties to field more women during elections, and government to set up a fund that will reward them for doing this.

Under House Bill 3877 or the proposed Women Participation and Representation in Political Parties Act of 2013, congressmen Ibarra Gutierrez III and Walden Bello seek to give political parties access to the Women in Political Parties Empowerment Fund if 30% of the official candidates they will field are women.

The fund may be used for two purposes: 

• For the party’s women and gender development agenda (40%)
• To augment funds for campaign expenditures of women candidates (60%)

“Although a lot of women are involved in government and political works, it is notable, however, that their presence is only observable at the lower levels of our political and governance systems. It narrows, however, as we move higher to top management and elected or ministerial posts,” Gutierrez said.

Case in point:

• Of the 289 members of the House of Representatives, only 79 or 27% are women. In the Senate, only 6 out of 24 senators or 25% are women.
• In the Supreme Court, only 3 out 15 justices or 20% are women. 
• The Philippines has had 2 women presidents out of the 15.
• In the 2010 national elections, women candidates only won 18.4% of elective positions.

All these statistics are well below the 30% critical mass for the participation of women in politics prescribed by the the United Nations.

More funds for gender equal political parties 

To qualify for the proposed fund, political parties must seek certification from the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) that their female candidates are bona fide members of the party, as well provide proof that they have funds allocated for the party’s women development agenda. 

The bill does not specify the total amount of the “empowerment fund” but it stated that each political party’s share in the fund “must be equal to amount segregated for the political party’s own women and gender development agenda.”

Once given access to the fund, the parties will be required to submit to the Commission on Elections and the PCW proof of how the money was spent to the. Failure to comply will disqualify them from a receiving a share of the fund in the future. 

“Compliance to the bill will not be mandatory because, while there is a need to ensure that women are given equal representation and participation, it is equally important that such acts are undertaken freely and willingly. This way, competence, meritocracy and willingness to render public service will not be sacrificed,” Gutierrez said. – Rappler.com

HB-3877 Women Participation and Presentation in Political Parties