The non-provision of "sustento" or child support could soon become a punishable offense, if Northern Samar 1st district Rep. Paul Daza's proposed Child Support Enforcement Act prospers in the upcoming 19th Congress.
Daza said the target of his bill's punitive provisions are the deadbeat or "balasubas" parents who don't fulfill their responsibilities to their children.
Incidentally, most of these undesirable parents are men.
Daza, in a press conference Monday afternoon, July 11 at the House of Representatives, cited World Health Organization (WHO) data stating that there are 14 million single parent households in the Philippines. Some 94 percent or 13.3 million of them are headed by women (WHO).
"That is a big number," said the Visayas solon, who filed House Bill (HB) No.44.
Under Section 15 of HB No.44, "Any person who willfully fails to pay child support, if such an obligation has remained unpaid for two months or has an outstanding amount due of or more, shall be liable."
"Probation may be granted to a first offender. For succeeding offenses, the penalty is imprisonment of not less than two years and not more than four years and a fine of not less than or not more than at the discretion of the court," it said.
If the offender is a Filipino living overseas, the bill says that "qualifying penalties as provided for in inter-country agreements shall be implemented".
“It’s about time that we enact a law that will protect our children from balasubas parents. Imagine, these children did not choose to be born; why will they be the ones to suffer more when their parents decide to separate?” Daza said in a subsequent statement.
“Through this proposed law, absentee or deadbeat parents (who are, unfortunately, mostly men, based on statistics) can no longer act as if bringing a child in this world can easily be tossed aside when a parent or both parents decide to give up on their relationship,” he added.
The Child Support Bill is among the first bills filed by Daza in the 19th Congress. The bill aims to redress the current imbalance in child support responsibilities of separated couples.
The measure mandates a minimum across-the-board amount of child support that all non-custodial parents (those who are no living with the child) must pay regardless of their income or lack thereof.
Daza said a provision in his bill allows government to help non-custodial parents find employment in order to facilitate the provision child support.