THE Council for the Welfare Children (CWC) is pushing for the passage of a law promoting positive parenting in 2024.
CWC Executive Director Undersecretary Angelo Tapales said in a Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon interview on Wednesday that they are pushing for legislation promoting positive parenting as against imposing harsh discipline.
“Hindi naman bawal mamalo ano, bawal manakit ng mga bata in the name of discipline. Bawal na ang corporal punishment iyan po ang gusto natin,” Tapales said.
Tapales explained the law would encourage and help parents in raising their children into becoming independent adults without necessarily imposing harsh discipline.
Tapales noted that in this year, the CWC observed the increasing cases of teen pregnancy where they expressed their concern for a legislation to address the issue.
The CWC has been in the forefront in the fight for children’s rights in the local government units (LGUs) across the country.
One of the notable accomplishments of the CWC last year is the increase in budget utilization or its capacity to spend its budget on the implementation of worthwhile projects and its daily operations.
Its budget utilization last year has reached 90.43 percent — 10 percent higher than the 80 percent utilization rate in 2022. In 2021, the commission’s budget utilization rate was low at 66 percent.
Under the leadership of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), the CWC is mandated to confer Seal of Child-Friendly Local Governance annually to deserving LGUs through the Child-Friendly Local Governance audit.
“We are also proud to report that in 2022, we had 110 percent increase in the number of LGUs conferred with Seal of Child-Friendly Local Governance, from 372 in 2021, it increased to 782 in 2022,” Tapales said.
“So, we recognize that we have a long way to go, because there are 1,634, if I’m not mistaken, our LGUs. It’s a quantum leap – 110 percent increase which happened in 2022.”
On October 21, 2023, the CWC also relaunched the Makabata Helpline with the landline 1383.
The CWC also entered into 23 memorandum of understandings (MOUs) for 2023 including partnerships with the Department of Justice, Department of Information and Communications Technology, Department of Labor and Employment, National Bureau of Investigation, Department of Social Work and Development, Philippine National Police and also with private sector like SM Cares, Philippine Long Distance and Telecommunications Company and Smart Communications.
Tapales added the CWC entered an MOU with the Philippine Broadcasting Service (PBS) for its MAKABATA TELERADYO, its first radio program in 49 years.
The MAKABATA TELERADYO started airing in Radyo Pilipinas 3 every Saturday between 10:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.
“Maganda pong mouthpiece po ito para sa mga kabataan po, talagang ito po ang magbi-ventilate ng kanilang mga hinaing po,” Tapales said.