Marcos vows to veto teen pregnancy prevention bill if not amended
President Marcos on Monday expressed concern over certain provisions of the proposed sex education bill, which he described as part of attempts to promote the “woke” culture among Filipino students.
In an interview, the President warned that he would veto Senate Bill No. 1979, or the Prevention of Adolescent Pregnancy Act, if it were to be approved in its current form.
“… I was shocked, and I was appalled by some of the elements of that [SB 1979]. Because all this ‘woke’ [attitude] that they are trying to bring into our system,” he said.
“You will teach 4-year-olds how to masturbate. That every child has the right to try different sexualities. This is ridiculous. It is abhorrent. It is a travesty of what sexual [orientation] and sex education should be to children,” he said.
The President is concerned that under the proposed law, parents are supposedly alienated from their role of teaching and influencing their children about sex education and sexuality.
“I’m a parent and I’m a grandparent. So, I feel very strongly about this,” he said, without elaborating.
Schools also need to teach the youth matters like the consequences of early pregnancy, and the prevalence of HIV, the President said.
“But to include the so-called ‘woke’ absurdities are abhorrent to me—and I’m already guaranteeing, this would not be passed into a law if this bill is passed in that form,” he said.
“I guarantee all parents, teachers and children: I will immediately veto it,” the President said.
The term “woke” refers to the state of being aware of social injustices, including issues like gender equality, and LGBTQ+ rights. It has also taken on a negative connotation of being overly sensitive or doggedly focused on political correctness.
The President clarified that he was standing by his position that sex education was “extremely important” but in a different context.
“Let me be very, very clear: I still believe that sex education in terms of teaching kids the anatomy of the reproductive systems of male and female is extremely important,” he said.
Author’s clarification
For her part, Sen. Risa Hontiveros said it was not true that the Senate bill she had authored to prevent teenage pregnancy would teach children as young as four years old the concepts of “masturbation” and “different sexualities.”
“Mr. President, with all due respect, it’s clear that even the word ‘masturbation’ is not in the bill. It also did not mention ‘try different sexualities,’” Hontiveros said in a statement.
She stressed that the Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) program under SB 1979 would teach children about human anatomy and the dangers of teenage pregnancy, matters that Mr. Marcos said should be taught in schools.
“We are also pushing for these,” she said. “I am willing to accept amendments to refine the bill so we can steer it to passage.”
Hontiveros, who has three daughters, had earlier dismissed as “fabrication” the claims of a religious group led by former Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno that the bill would mandate schools to provide lessons on “bodily pleasure” and “sexual rights” to students.
