RIPPLE Vanishing Hope

Teenagers engaging to premarital sex and getting pregnant at an early age have been one of the biggest problems of our society. The supposed-to-be “pag-asa ng bayan” are slowly drifting away as they give in to the sinful and destructible call of desire.

As modernization and liberation continues to take over the world, more teenagers are continuing to engage in premarital sex. Forgetting that sex is sacred and should only be done by married couple, some millenials endulge to it like it is some kind of an addictive candy that they can’t live without.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, one-third of Filipinos aged 15 to 24 have engaged in premarital sex and a majority of them do not use any protection that can lead to early pregnancy.

It was stated in a survey conducted by Commission on Population (POPCOM) that almost 196,000 young Filipinas get pregnant in just a year and an average of 500 give birth everyday.

The alarming cases of teenage pregnancy is an eye-opener to people especially to helter-skelter youths who choose the temporary happiness and pleasure without even thinking of their forsaken dreams.

The government is doing their job. They have already

Ayumi TOYODA

implemented programs such as Teenage Pregnancy Prevention Program, they have given protections to teenagers and birth control pills are even free in health centers. All of those programs and actions but until now, we can’t feel and see any improvement, infact, the cases are getting worse. No matter how people persuade other teenagers to stop and no matter how we make them understand the possible outcome of their actions, nothing will happen. It is too hard to convince people who can hear but do not listen.

If it can’t be solve through kind actions, why not make moves that will push them to prevent the doings themselves? In the end, the victim will be the innocent baby. Every irresponsible parent should be penalize and if possible, should be jailed. It is their actions anyway so they should pay for it.

They say resisting is too hard especially if the ‘it’ has been started, so better not let the curiousity take over you for.

Horizons

Valerie Llena Good in Moderation

With the recent anomalies that involve the youth in the country, such as being involved in illegal drugs, the government has provided a potential to solution with regards to the issue. It is to revive the mandatory ROTC in the education system in the Philipines. Will the ROTC enable to straighten the crooked paths of the youths or would just cause them more burden as students?

Despite the fact that the President Duterte himself skipped the ROTC as a student, as he said in his SONA, he agrees that the ROTC should be brought back in schools.

The House Bill 8961 or the reinstatement of the mandatory Reserved Officer Training Corps (ROTC) to be brought back in schools for all the senior high school students, for the purpose of instilling patriotism, moral and spiritual values, good citizenship, and discipline among younger Filipinos. It sounds upright and worthy, however, the proposal was met with backlash and certain negative criticisms from the netizens. And somewhere between these arguments, we might find some good common sense.

First thing, one of the apparent reasons is due to past and previous hazing incident that smeared the reputation of ROTC. Teacher’s Representative France Castro points out that the recent hazing issue of a PMA Cadet that resulted death to the latter strengthens the appeal to halt the reinstatement of ROTC in schools. It is really disappointing, knowing that such terrible event took place where future military officers reside.

So if this is to be reestablished in schools, although the lawmakers are ensuring that the gloomy past would not happen again with some safety nets, still there is no certainty that the students won’t go through the same traumatic and horrific experience. Hence, there would be a failure in instilling patriotism but rather create a subculture of fear and violence among youngsters.

Second thing, for Orland Nolasco Miñoza, said via Rappler that fixing the K to 12 curriculum should be a priority instead of the ROTC Program. It is a hardto-swallow pill for the lawmakers because it is apparently true. For the four years since it has been implemented, the program has encountered a lot of criticism regarding its curriculum.

In addition to that, a study by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) revealed that some schools were not ready to provide the various tracks and strands under the program. And if ROTC will be approved in the Congress, it would cost 38 billion pesos annually, said Senator Win Gatchalian. So if ROTC would be restored, will the government be able to compensate the expensive cost?

Next, some arguments were raised due to ROTC being linked to the West Philippine Sea dispute. In which the backers of ROTC see it as a good opportunity to add numbers in the reserved military forces. Senator Gatchalian said via article in Rappler that the revival of the mandatory ROTC “would help drive the point that although we are a small nation in terms of economy and military, we will never back down from our fight in sovereignty in the West Philippine Sea.”

With this kind of thinking, it seems like war is inevitable, and we are to face China sooner or later. Dejectedly saying, a piece of land isn’t worth the lives of an entire nation. And having more numbers in the armed forces doesn’t necessarily mean enough stronger forces to defend the country.

Despite its negative criticisms, reestablishing ROTC might not be bad if it goes under thorough process. Everything is good, but in moderation.