Government Reorganization

For me the government agencies that can be merged together would be the Social Security
System, the Government Service Insurance System and the Philhealth. Since all of these agencies have the
common function of providing a system that is suitable to the needs of the people throughout the
Philippines by promoting social justice through savings and ensuring meaningful social security protection
against hazards of disability, sickness, maternity, old age, death and other contingencies resulting in loss
of income or financial burden, merging these agencies can save the government a lot of money and the
savings can be realigned to programs for social services and salary increases of public workers.

National Defense and Security

For me the greatest national security challenge that the government cannot be able to address
even for the next 10 years is that we would not be able to defend ourselves in case another country goes
to war with us. One of the reasons is that we are not equipped enough to go to war. Unlike Russia and
USA, who can go into war with other countries and possess sufficient warheards, the Philippines cannot
defend itself despite the fact that we are a developing country. Another reason is that our Constitution
provides that “The Philippines renounces war as an instrument of national policy”, which means that war
would never be our option in cases where we are threatened and provoked by other countries to go to
war.

Explain the reason why a bill that was transmitted to the President can be vetoed.

This is because of the principle of Checks and Balances, which provides that one department
checks and balances the act of the other department and will not stand aside if it acts outside of its
Constitutional powers. The President is allowed to veto a bill if he/she finds that the bill would only cause
more hardship towards the people and doesn’t promote public policy or that it would impose more
burden towards the community.

Should struggling students be retained.

Yes, struggling students should be retained. Grades aren’t everything in school, although it reflects
the performance of the student but sometimes academics can be influenced by other aspects such as if
the student cannot study in their homes because of a toxic family, or because they are burdened with
other obligations that they can barely have enough time to focus on their studies. Nobody should be
deprived of the liberty to go to school and study even if they have failing grades. Education is a journey,
and it is not meant to be a collection of highly intellectual people.

Should divorce be legalized in the Philippines?

Yes, divorce should be legalized in the Philippines. This would not only help people who are a
single parent but also those who are tied to a marriage that has ended up in a disaster. Marriage is like a
tango, it takes two to make it work. Oftentimes marriages break apart and fail miserably without the fault
of one of the spouse. In other countries, they have legalized divorce because they acknowledge the fact
that not all marriages are perfect. Some eventually fail and end up to be a nightmare. During the Spanish
regime, divorce was legal, if it was legal back then and had little implications on the family, then why
couldn’t we legalize it right now.

Why would you like to be part of the 8th regular session of the PMC?

I would like to learn more of myself through other means outside my comfort zone. Learning is
not only confined within our textbooks and in our classrooms but also through experience. As an advocate
of Education, it is my duty to explore boundaries that touch on other aspects and co-relate them to my
own knowledge and therefore, grow even more as a person and a citizen.