POPCOM to youth: Be responsible, discerning this Valentine's Day
Published Feb 14, 2020 12:13 pm
By Richa Noriega
The Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM) reminded the Filipino youth on Friday to heighten their sense of responsibility and discernment as they celebrate Valentine’s Day.
A couple enjoys the spectacular view of sunset in Manila. (Czar Dancel / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
The country’s lead population management agency led a pocket activity on Valentine’s Day with some college students at the LRT2-Legarda Station in Manila.
They handed out symbolic roses to the students with a penned note, “to always choose their dreams and aspirations over a moment’s pleasure.”
Undersecretary Juan Antonio Perez III said the event was to urge adolescents to heed the warning signs of the railway.
“We appeal on our young ones to ‘Stop:’ Pause and look beyond the present, and choose the path that leads to greater opportunities. ‘Look:’ Consider the possible costs and consequences of their rash actions, through trivial they may be at a moment’s indecision. And ‘Listen:’ Take heed of the wisdom as well as experiences of older people, and be discerning of voices around you,” he said.
The POPCOM chief also appealed to the students to maximize the privilege of their education and spread the word to empower the next generation.
“Speaking on behalf of the agency which empowers Filipino families, we urge our young people to grow and build themselves first,” he said. “True love is patient and willing to wait. It is the kind that perseveres despite challenges.”
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA)’s Civil Registration and Vital Statistics, the number of teenage pregnancies has continued to rise in past years.
Based on the data, the number of births by very young adolescents has been increasing between 2011 (1,381) and 2018 (2,250) — a 63 percent rise.
A couple enjoys the spectacular view of sunset in Manila. (Czar Dancel / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)
The country’s lead population management agency led a pocket activity on Valentine’s Day with some college students at the LRT2-Legarda Station in Manila.
They handed out symbolic roses to the students with a penned note, “to always choose their dreams and aspirations over a moment’s pleasure.”
Undersecretary Juan Antonio Perez III said the event was to urge adolescents to heed the warning signs of the railway.
“We appeal on our young ones to ‘Stop:’ Pause and look beyond the present, and choose the path that leads to greater opportunities. ‘Look:’ Consider the possible costs and consequences of their rash actions, through trivial they may be at a moment’s indecision. And ‘Listen:’ Take heed of the wisdom as well as experiences of older people, and be discerning of voices around you,” he said.
The POPCOM chief also appealed to the students to maximize the privilege of their education and spread the word to empower the next generation.
“Speaking on behalf of the agency which empowers Filipino families, we urge our young people to grow and build themselves first,” he said. “True love is patient and willing to wait. It is the kind that perseveres despite challenges.”
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA)’s Civil Registration and Vital Statistics, the number of teenage pregnancies has continued to rise in past years.
Based on the data, the number of births by very young adolescents has been increasing between 2011 (1,381) and 2018 (2,250) — a 63 percent rise.