Manila: The House of Representatives’ Committee on Appropriations is currently assessing the funding requirements for the establishment of a Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) office. This office is intended to oversee the implementation of House Bill (HB) 8987, known as the Act Ensuring Child Support and Penalizing Parental Refusal or Neglect Thereof.

According to Philippines News Agency, the Committee on Welfare of Children has given its approval to the bill, which proposes a penalty of up to six years of imprisonment for fathers who fail to provide financial support for their children. It has been agreed during the hearings that the amount of financial support fathers are required to provide will be based on the specific needs of the child.

The proposed legislation mandates that the DSWD, in collaboration with the National Economic and Development Authority, will be responsible for determining the precise amount of child support required. House Deputy Majority Leader and ACT-CIS Party-list Representative Erwin Tulfo, one of the authors of the bill, emphasized the necessity of the legislation. ‘We really need this kind of proposed law. Fathers who refuse to support their children must be punished, especially those who abandoned his family,’ Tulfo stated in a news release.

Tulfo expressed gratitude towards his colleagues in Congress for advancing the proposed measure but urged for expedited progress to ensure accountability for fathers who neglect their parental responsibilities. The bill aims to alleviate the struggles faced by approximately 15 million mothers raising children alone, who will no longer need to beg or plead with their ex-partners or the fathers of their children for financial support.