Hasty vote will kill RH bill—Enrile

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile on Sunday warned Senator Pia Cayetano, principal sponsor of the reproductive health (RH) bill in the upper chamber, that “she will lose” if she insisted on a plenary decision to end the period of debate so the controversial measure could be quickly put to a vote.

Enrile noted that many senators still wanted to ask questions about the bill. He pointed out that the debate had shifted from simple queries about the side effects of contraceptives to deeper and more serious concerns, such as the implications of a controlled population on economic development.

Reports said Cayetano planned to file a motion seeking an end to the period of debate or interpellation so the Senate could move to the period of amendment and, finally, a vote.

Enrile, however, thinks Cayetano may be taking a wrong tack.

“If (Cayetano) files a motion to close the period of interpellation, baka matalo siya (she may face defeat).  If she insists on that motion, she will lose. While I will accept and submit her motion to the floor for a vote, in my view, that motion is likely to lose,” Enrile said in an interview.

As it was, the Senate President said, “at least 10” members were prepared to vote against the RH bill should Cayetano force the issue, noting that the number could be decisive in killing the bill.

Of the “six or seven” others still undecided, Enrile said, “two or three” could be persuaded to side with those against the measure.

“These are just my personal observations,” said Enrile, who chose not to name fellow senators who were likely to vote “nay.”

Simple majority

A simple majority of those present in a session would be enough to decide the fate of the RH bill, the Senate President said. For example, in a quorum of 18 senators, 10 votes would suffice to overturn the measure, he added.

Cayetano suggested last week that Senate leaders were reluctant to tackle the RH bill after the chamber approved the 2012 national budget in record time.

The RH bill seeks to define the government’s policy on reproductive health and involves an endorsement of artificial methods of contraception to aid parents to determine the number of children in their families.

While supporters praise the advantages offered by the measure, especially to women from economically and educationally disadvantaged sectors, those who oppose it argue that the RH bill would promote promiscuity and give global lobbyists a say in determining the size of the country’s population.

Enrile and Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III, in various instances, explained that many questions about the RH were still left unanswered.

Issues other than health

The Senate President echoed fears that the Philippines might replicate the experience of other countries where the diminishing number of younger people could not support an aging population.

“That’s why we need to examine the effects of this bill on our security and economy.  If farmers and other poor people are being targeted so they would not have so many children, who would take over the farms? You see, this can be a pro-elitist bill. Why, is it only the wealthy people who have the right to bear children,” Enrile asked.

“This bill is too important to rush.  Why can’t the proponents understand that? You are dealing with the population of a country, not just the health of the women involved,” he added.

Earlier, Senator Panfilo Lacson warned that the country’s dwindling natural resources would prove inadequate in providing for a continuously growing population.

Pro-lifers claim victory

Pro-life groups on Sunday said they regarded as a “victory” the announcement by leaders of Congress that the RH bill would not be passed before the end of the year.

“The message is we are victorious already in the fight against the RH bill and we are now conducting the house-to-house combat—for the upper and lower houses [of Congress]. The passage of the bill is supposed to end the year; let the people know that we are victorious in our war. But the battle continues to rage,” Pro-Life Philippines Foundation president Eric Manalang told reporters.

Pro-life groups from various parts of the country staged a prayer-rally at Rizal Park Sunday as they ended their National Marian Pilgrimage for Life that began on December 5.

The rally, which had the theme, “Save the World Through Divine Power,” backs the Catholic Church Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines’ opposition to the RH bill and same-sex unions.

Manalang also called on President Aquino not to put pressure on congressmen to approve the bill.  “This kind of pressure is uncalled for. The will of the people should be followed. Let us not force this. The problem [in our country] is poverty and corruption. This is what the government should be spending for,” he said.