THREE Bohol congressmen upheld and guarded the sanctity of marriage when they cast their “no” votes against the absolute Divorce Bill approved in third and final reading during the plenary of the 19th House of Representatives (HoR) last week.
Cong. Edgar Chatto, Congresswomen Vanessa C. Aumentado, Alexie B. Tutor of 1s, 2nd and 3rd districts, respectively, and made public their position that they opposed on the controversial bill presented during the session.
One hundred twenty-six voted in favor and 109 opposed and 20 abstained, according to the facebook post of Aumentado.
“We may have different views on this, but I am standing strongly on my NO vote against the Divorce Bill. I believe in the sanctity of marriage. Our belief being grounded strongly on our faith that what God has joined together let no man put asunder,” Tutor said.
Aumentado said that, “As a Catholic, I believe in the sanctity of marriage. That married couple should honor the promise they made to God, do their best to uphold that vow regardless how hard or difficult things can be. That’s my personal faith in marriage.”
Chatto added that “The first district of Bohol stands by the sanctity of marriage and the primordial role it plays as the cornerstone of families and communities in the country. To weaken this foundation is to give a foothold for the erosion and welcome the demise of the basic unit of our society.”
Aumentado personally believes that “there’s a great impact on the emotional, psychological and even physical to divorced spouses but, more so on the children.”
She said that “If divorce will be legalized, married couples will not try as hard as they should to save their marriage for the very reason that there is divorce and a possibility of finding another spouse.”
The triumvirate said they (other people) may have a different views on the divorce bill but ask everybody to respect their opinion because they did not judge everyone’s belief on divorce.
Chatto cited a survey “conducted from September 30 to October 4 with 1,200 respondents, OCTA Research found that 40% favored passing a law that would legalize divorce, while just over half or 51% of Filipinos were against it. Around 9% were undecided. The highest support for divorce was in Mindanao, at 48%, closely followed by Metro Manila, at 46%. Respondents in the Visayas had the lowest support (for divorce) at 33%. Conversely, the Visayas had the strongest opposition against divorce at 59%. The lowest opposition was in Metro Manila, at 39%.
But despite this, the absolute divorce bill still approved by the HoR.
The bill was sponsored by Albay first district Rep. Edcel Lagman said, “Divorce is not the monster plaguing a marriage. It is marital infidelity, abandonment, violence, and cruelty, among others, which are the devils that destroy marriages,” said Albay 1st District Rep. Edcel Lagman, who sponsored and authored the bill. The bill defines the grounds for absolute divorce, which include physical violence, homosexuality, marital infidelity, alcoholism, chronic gambling, and drug addiction without justifiable cause for more than one year.
Philstar repoted that Under the bill, troubled couples may file a petition for absolute divorce using the following grounds: (1) legal separation under Article 55 of the Family Code of the Philippines, as modified; (2) annulment of marriage under Article 45 of the Family Code of the Philippines, as modified; (3) separation of the spouses in fact for at least five years at the time the petition for absolute divorce is filed, and reconciliation is highly improbable; (4) psychological incapacity as provided in Article 36 of the Family Code of the Philippines; (5) irreconcilable differences; and (6) domestic or marital abuse to include acts under Republic Act 9262, or the Violence Against Women and Their Children Act of 2004. (rvo)
