HOUSE Deputy Majority Leader and ACT-CIS Partylist Representative Erwin Tulfo expressed gratitude to the Committee on the Welfare of Children after his proposed legislation seeking to impose stricter penalties on parents or fathers who refuse to support their children was approved by the committee.
House Bill 8987, or the “An Act Ensuring Child Support and Penalizing Parental Refusal or Neglect Thereof,” is now under the Committee on Appropriations to assess the funding needed to establish a DSWD office that will oversee the law’s implementation.
“Kailangang kailangan na natin itong batas na ito. Kailangang maparusahan ang mga tatay na ayaw bigyan ng suporta ang kanilang mga anak, lalo na kapag iniwan na niya ang kanyang pamilya,” Tulfo said in a statement.
“Nagpapasalamat tayo sa ating mga kasamahan sa Kongreso sa pag-usad nitong panukalang batas, pero sana ay mas madaliin pa ito para tuluyan nang mapanagot ang mga walang pusong ama na tinalikuran ang kanilang mga sariling anak,” Tulfo emphasized.
The proposed bill was filed by Tulfo in August 2023, along with his fellow ACT-CIS partylist representatives Jocelyn Tulfo and Edvic Yap, Benguet Representative Eric Yap, and Quezon City 2nd District Representative Ralph Tulfo.
The legislators propose a penalty of up to six years of imprisonment for “deadbeat” fathers who refuse to fulfill their responsibilities to their children.
It was agreed during hearings that the financial support fathers must provide will depend on the child’s needs. The law will mandate the DSWD, in collaboration with the NEDA, to determine the amount that “deadbeat” fathers must provide as child support.
“This bill will help our sole parents, numbering around 15 million in our population, and serve as their tool to secure the support their children need. Mothers will no longer have to beg or plead with their ex-partners or the fathers of their children for financial support,” Tulfo stated during a recent congressional hearing on the proposed legislation.
“Enough is enough, I would say. This has to end right now, which is why this law must be passed. What is truly unfortunate is that some of these irresponsible fathers hold government positions, while others work in the private sector,” Tulfo added.
Other authors of the bill include Representatives Paul Ruiz Daza, Patrick Michael Vargas, Paolo Z. Duterte, Gus Tambunting, Ma. Victoria Co-Pilar, Jude Acidre, Jurdin Jesus Romualdo, Baio Dimple Mastura, Ma. Rene Ann Lourdes Matibag, the late Edward Hagedorn, Noel Rivera, Wilbert Lee, and Angelica Natasha Co.
