BAGUIO CITY – Instead of utilizing the stage to show to voters whether he possessed eloquence of speech to convince voters to choose him as candidate, Christian Sia, a congressional candidate in Pasig instead, used the rostrum to denigrate solo mothers, a vulnerable sector in Philippine society.
From above stage holding a microphone to his mouth, from an advantage point, Sia, instead of showing pulpit eloquence, showed a hollow and rancid character.
And for bad mouthing solo mothers, the Philippine Supreme Court, during its full-court session held recently in the City of Pines, gave notice to Sia a non-extendable period of 10 days why he shouldn’t be meted discipline for cracking foul sexual jokes on single mothers which he did during a campaign sortie.
Cordillera female residents, other women in the Philippines as well as solo parents snapped their fingers in spontaneous agreement upon learning the Supreme Court has taken a congressional candidate in Pasig to task for uttering foul language that generally cast a bad smear on solo mothers.
As of latest count, there are over 15 million solo parents in the Philippines of which 95 per cent of that number are women.
Sia said during that sortie: “Para sa mga solo parent ng Pasig, minsan sa isang taon, ang mga solo parent na babae, na nireregla pa, ‘nay malinaw na nireregla pa, at nalulungkot, minsan sa isang taon, pwedeng sumipeng ho sa akin. . .”
Earlier, the Commission on Election (COMELEC) gave SIA a show cause order over his joke that singled menstruating mothers can sleep with him. In the COMELEC order, SIA was ordered to explain why he should not be disqualified for the 2025 elections or, be liable for an election offense.
While Sia apologized later for his dirty joke, COMELEC Chairman George Erwin Garcia explained such an apology isn’t enough and won’t lessen the weight of his (Sia’s) actions. Garcia said use of foul language in an election offense.
Women’s rights group Gabriela, said that the apology of Sia “was wanting of any ounce of sincerity and evidently was merely an afterthought to troubleshoot the public uproar and backlash that he created.”
“Sia’s actions were appalling and reprehensible, which reeked of misogyny and sexism. It is an attack against the dignity of every woman and a clear disrespect for the pain and struggle every single mother endures day to day, “Gabriela explained.
“With Sia, there will be no safe space for women, whether in or outside the courtroom,” Gabriela added.
He thought he could get away with it. Instead, Sia sparked outrage with his sexist joke about sleeping with single mothers. Now, Sia is facing multiple show cause notices over his sexist remarks.
His words, which he called jokes but looked by others as male chauvinist comments, gathered a windstorm of backlash from the female sector of the Philippines and was widely criticized by women’s rights groups who viewed it as crass joke.
Women’s rights groups wrote the Supreme Court asking for Sia, who happens to be a lawyer, to be disbarred.
“Misogyny is never a joke. We have been saying for a long time that during the campaign period, we condemn the continued use of women as entertainment, as subject of demeaning jokes which has a huge implication for us women because women pay an important role in election and in society, especially they should not be made sex objects of politicians this election,” Gabriela secretary-general Clarice Palce entoned.
This article is about old story “revisited,” and it tells of modern story of solo mothers and their children, these important central characters who too, have their exits and entrances in much the same way we do, in the shadows and on the edges.
Solo mothering or solo parenting is a strand from the tapestry of social realism, an unfolding story of gender and state and sadly often, the muffled voices of solo mothers and their children that echo in the invisibility of spaces that the “nuts and bolts” of survival have unfortunately constructed for them.
As of the latest count in the city of Baguio, there are over 500 solo parents registered with the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO). However, it is of the assumption there are more solo parents out there, unregistered and living on the edges.
Under Republic Act 8972, solo parent falls under the following category:
– A woman who gives birth as a result of rape and other crimes against chastity even without a final conviction of the offender: Provided, that the mother keeps and raises the child;
– Parent left solo or alone with the responsibility of parenthood due to death of spouse;
– Parent left solo or alone with the responsibility of parenthood while the spouse is detained or is serving sentence for a criminal conviction for at least one (1) year;
– Parent left solo or alone with the responsibility of parenthood due to physical and/or mental incapacity of spouse for at least one (1) year as long as he/she is entrusted w with the custody of the children;
– Parent left solo or alone with the responsibility of parenthood due to the declaration of nullity or annulment of marriage as decreed by a court or by a church as long as he/she is entrusted with the custody of the children;
– Parent left solo or alone with the responsibility of parenthood due to the abandonment of spouse for at least one (1) year;
– Unmarried mother/father who has preferred to keep and rear his/her children instead of having others care for them or give them up to a welfare institution;
– Any other person who solely provides parental care and support to a child or children;
– Any family member who assumes the responsibility of head of family as a result of the death, abandonment, disappearance or prolonged absence of the parents or solo parent.
In a nutshell, a solo parent is someone who raises a child or children alone, without any kind of support from a partner and such person does not need to be poor.
Many studies conducted on solo parenting often chronicle how suffering of both solo parent and child or children raises the absurdity of society in which these persons are victims of adult power and ideals of civilization that has run amok.
In the case of females, solo parenting or solo motherhood stands at the cross-section of various Cordillera society currents. Single motherhood is a gendered position, shaped by circumstances – some unavoidable.
Regardless if a Filipina is single by choice or not, being a single mom is mentally grueling, particularly in a public where negative cliché exists.
Solo mothers in Baguio and La Trinidad that Daily Laborer have had the chance to talk with, for this article, intimated their ages ranged from early twenties, are ethnically diverse, had schooling and are not out to alter the world.
They work diligently on behalf of their children, patching together a life that resembles a regular Filipino class family. Like all moms, they strive to raise their kids acceptable in Philippine society norms and acceptable family convictions.
Being solo mothers, they may refashion how they care for their kids through various routes to motherhood and will even end up reaffirming certain kinds of kinship as these women are agents in their own lives but, unfortunately, lack the power to transform the solo parenthood into a two-parent heterosexual family.
These solo mothers who talked with Daily Laborer explained they strive to create viable families but they are also confronted with the challenge of their kids asking them where their fathers are and why these father do not live with them – or even visit them.
Even though these solo mothers have not married the men who fathered their children, “Father” occupies a lead role in the master narrative in the solo mother family life.
As an example of lead narrative, a solo mother would often say her children, “Addan tu aldaw ket makitaw yu wenno maam-ammo yu ni tatang yu!”
This statement emanating from their solo parents, the children take to heart, believing that somebody, somehow, indeed, they will get to know who their fathers are. Genetic stake automatically confers to the individual child the urge to discover who his/her true father is.
Solo parents welfare has come a long way since enactment of RA 8972 or the Solo Parents Welfare Act of 2000, later amended into RA 11861 or, The Expanded Solo Parents Welfare Act that was enacted June 4, 2022.
The new law expanded its scope and increased benefits granted to solo parents, covering six new categories, which are:
– A parent who provides sole parental care and support of the child or children;
– A spouse, any family member, or a guardian of the child of an Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW), provided the OFW belongs to a group of low/semi-skilled workers and has been away for an uninterrupted period of 12 months;
– An unmarried parent who keeps and rears the child or children;
– Any legal guardian, adoptive, or foster parent who solely provides parental care and support;
– Any relative within the fourth civil degree of consanguinity or affinity of the parent or legal guardian who assumes parental care and support of the child or children as a result of death, abandonment, disappearance, or absence of the parents for at least six months, and;
– A pregnant woman who provides sole parental care and support to the unborn child or children.
