The story of the passion of Christ and Easter is parallel to the recurring theme in the history of the Filipino nation.
Each Philippine revolution centers on the people who collectively longed for deliverance after being subjected to tyrants and oppressors, rising up from the darkness of subjugation, towards the light of resurrection.
Most people are rooting for P-Noy as the Deliverer to succeed in his goal to lead the nation into a better quality of life through transparent and committed governance.
With this in mind, he has to focus on what can be done (the doables), and not be derailed by the maneuverings of those who are only acting on their own self interests and hidden agenda.
A positive note was made by P-Noy when he declared his resolve to push through with the Responsible Parenthood Bill. This can be done with enough political will and support of the Filipino people.
As leader, P-Noy should be able to sift the grain from the sand, as the issue of Responsible Parenthood should be dissected from the issue of religion or politics. Some sectors should stop the “shame and blame game to influence P-Noy in making his decision on vital national issues like Responsible Parenthood. Some even declared he is not worthy to get married because of his stand.
Some are insisting that to support Responsible Parenthood is to support abortion — which is farthest from the truth.
Responsible Parenthood is about being able to plan the number of children to have, the psychological and financial resources needed to meet the birth and rearing of each child as a whole, the over-all impact on the family unit.
It is not about the shame and blame game of being condemned as a heretic or committing mortal sin when one has to own the responsibility of choosing how to manage one’s own family.
Thus, it is the duty of government to make the choices available to the populace — natural and artificial methods. Abortion is the extreme option of those who did not plan to get pregnant in the first place.
Contrary to common notion, study shows that more married women resort to abortion to get rid of unwanted pregnancies after the fourth child. This is what Responsible Parenthood Bill is trying to prevent. It does not encourage sexual liberality or promiscuity.
Regardless of one’s religion, many agree that it is more sinful to have children when one cannot afford the basis necessities like food and other financial responsibilities that go with child rearing.
Statistics show that children who end up in the streets come from economically -deprived households, and they usually graduate into a life of juvenile delinquency and later, criminality. These children are put to work early in life to contribute to the survival and economics of the household. Thus, more children, more warm bodies to earn money for the parents, instead of the parents earning money to provide for the children.
In fact, studies show that children who are victims of human trafficking are actually sold by their own parents themselves. Thus, the cycle of the violence of poverty continues.
Some are trying to push the issue towards ridiculous ends, like Barangay Ayala-Alabang which passed an ordinance to require the listing-registration of the names of all who buy condoms or pills from pharmacies. This is part of the shame and blame game, and this is the reason why the very private Lea Salonga came out, and demonstrated against the ordinance, along with former Health Secretary Dr. Esperanza Cabral.
Let people have an adult conversation about our goals as a nation, and one concrete step is to make each family unit responsible and economically-viable; we cannot afford to leave this matter to chance. Each family is the basic unit of a nation, and thus, the health of a family is an indicator of the over-all health of a nation.
P-Noy must be given all the support and prayers for success, and one can help by actualizing responsible parenthood in the privacy of their own homes. Stop the shame and blame game.