House vows to speed up process on RH bill

Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. on Thursday said the House would set stricter ground rules of not asking “repetitive and irrelevant” questions on the reproductive health bill but would leave it up to the individual members’ conscience to heed or not the President’s marching order to make the bill their top priority.



House Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II said he expected the lawmakers, mostly allies of President Benigno Aquino III, who have listed their names as interpellators, to forego lining up and debate with the authors in the plenary.



Before Congress adjourned sine die in June, only four of the 38 anti-RH lawmakers were able to engage the authors in the plenary debate. All 38 were President Aquino’s allies.



House Minority Leader Edcel Lagman and Senior Assistant Majority Leader Janette Garin, authors of House Bill 4244, met with other authors Wednesday night to seek update on what transpired during the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council.



Garin said that President Aquino himself argued for the RH bill’s passage.



The President, she said, reiterated his story about a 16-year-old girl who already has two children.



“You complain about lack of classrooms and we are doing something about it. Does the bill say something about responsible parenthood? It is there,” Garin quoted the President as telling the anti-RH lawmakers.



At one point, Senator Franklin Drilon had to put in check the lawmakers who wanted to argue their anti-RH position with the President.



“Will you please allow the President finish what he is saying? Please do not interrupt,” Garin quoted Drilon as telling the lawmakers.



Not one anti-RH senator argued with the President.



Gonzales said while the President’s endorsing the passage of the RH bill would help fast track the process, the House leadership would not impose a deadline.



“We cannot impose or set a deadline otherwise we will be accused of railroading the bill. It will still go through the same process but we expect the number of those who would debate in the plenary to decline at least,” Gonzales said.



Belmonte gave assurance that the RH bill will be voted on.



“The RH bill is now part of the President’s agenda and priority and the plenary debate can resume even next week but we have yet to work out anew certain ground rules to prevent congressmen from asking the same questions,” Belmonte said.

by Christine Herrera