MANILA, Philippines – A day before lawmakers vote to either continue or terminate the debates on the controversial Reproductive Health Bill, a retired Catholic archbishop insisted that “contraception is corruption.”
Archbishop Emeritus Oscar Cruz told Radyo Inquirer 990AM in an interview on Monday that there was no assurance that the country will improve once the measure is passed and the population is reduced.
He cited North America’s high unemployment rate despite its controlled population, saying “mahirap sabihin na mayaman na kapag konti ang tao. Hindi ito nakukuha sa dami o sa konti ng tao.”
Reacting to information that President Benigno Aquino III’s plans to meet with lawmakers on the RH Bill Monday, he suspected that votes on the measure would not be based on conviction, “hindi rin pananampalataya at lalong hindi moralidad.”
Cruz then slammed House Bill 4244 proponent Albay Representative Edcel Lagman’s statements against the Catholic church’s anti-RH Bill rally during the weekend and denied that they were spreading black propaganda.
He claimed that they advise married women to practice natural family planning, explaining that they told married couples “maganak kayo ng kaya ninyong tustusan, alagaan at
Archbishop Emeritus Oscar Cruz INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
pag-aralin.”
“Hindi itinuturo ng simbahan na maganak kayo hangga’t gusto ninyo. Bahala na kung anong mangyari,” he added.
The former president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines said that maternal death was caused by insufficient medical services and could not be solved by the passage of the RH Bill which he claimed to be proposing to “get rid of people.”
“Ang mga babae sa mahihirap na lugar ay namamatay (sa panganganak) sa pagkat walang medical services, hindi dahil nanganganak,” he said, adding that it was not caused by the lack of contraceptives.
Instead of allocating P3 billion for contraceptives, Cruz suggested that the money be used to create infrastructure in provinces with low population.
He said that people are forced to live in Metro Manila because the provinces lacked infrastructure and opportunities.
“Sa Pilipinas, ang daming lugar na walang katao-tao, nakakapagtaka. Nagsisiksikan sila sa Metro Manila—may mga nakatira sa karton, sa ilalim ng tulay—dahil doon sa malalayong lugar walang infrastructure development,” said Cruz.
For more of the report, listen to Radyo Inquirer 990AM.