It has been a year since Bryan’s little angel came to this world. He was 17 then, and all he ever wanted was to live out his “pagbibinata” and have fun.

Never did he think that one night out would change his life.

Last year, he needed to find a job to provide for the daily needs of his pregnant live-in partner. He worked as a bakery assistant, a market boy, and an illegal factory worker. He grabbed every opportunity just to man up to his responsibilities to his partner.

Bryan is just one of the many teenage boys who engage in premarital sex as a minor, and who needed to face the resulting pregnancy.

Teenage pregnancy is a big concern of families, communities, and the government. A lot has been written about the issue, and many mechanisms are in place to help curb its incidence. However, the males’ side about this issue was rarely written about and heard.

Insufficient information, absent parents, and teen pregnancy

According to the National Statistics Office (NSO), there was a 65% increase on teenage pregnancy rate from 2000-2011. There are many reasons associated with this increase, including frequent Internet usage, insufficient access to information about sex, and lack of parental supervision.

In an article posted in rappler.com, Commissioner Percival Cendaña of the National Youth Commission (NYC) said that Internet and frequent use of social networking sites contribute to incidences of teenage sex and pregnancy because the ease of communication between lovers has “accelerated the time needed to be intimate.”

The Family Health Survey, on the other hand, pointed to insufficient access to information about sexual health and reproductive health services as a reason behind the phenomenon. But according to Antipolo Bishop Gabriel Reyes, it is not sex education that we need to give the teenagers but a strengthening of self control and valuing for life.

Another reason for teenage pregnancy is the opportunity for intimacy due to absent parents. In the Philippines where many children have OFW parents, teenagers spend a lot of “alone” time with their lovers and less with supervising elders who have authority over them. An article at youthpinoy.com quoted NYC Commissioner Cendaña saying that 36.7% of young Filipinos believe “early sexual encounter is acceptable in society.”

Desertion, “barkada,” and Bryan

Bryan came from a broken family. His mother went overseas and has been an OFW for almost six years now, leaving all her family responsibilities to her husband. She had since then lived a new life and raised another family in Iraq. Bryan’s father left him and his siblings under the care of their grandmother. Parentless, the only thing Bryan knew at that time was to study hard and to let his siblings enjoy life.

However, adolescence came, and his peers or “barkada” became his second family. His cellphone became his buddy, and girls became his playmates. With the onset of his teenage years, all he ever wanted was to forget how he and his siblings were left behind by their own parents and how cruel life could be. He stopped going to school because there was no financial support available for him. At a young age, he learned to smoke and to drink. His barkada became his refuge since he thought that this was all he got left. No education, no parental guidance, and, at that time, no valuing for his own life. “Patapon,” that was how he described himself.

All these pushed him to seek pleasures and fun. And he found those in bed. He was in a relationship with Mina for more than four months when they finally did it. However, once was not enough; they did it several times. He was confident the pregnancy would never happen.

“Naka-condom naman ako. Pero nung huli, di na ako nag-condom. Umiinom na si Mina ng pills,” he shared.

He thought that his limited knowledge about sex was already enough. But he was wrong. And that lapse in judgment led to little Samantha today.

Teen pregnancy, government action, and economic reality

Teenage pregnancy is notably observed among girls aged 15 to 19. The increase was 65% between 2000 and 2011, but birth rate in this age group was only 38% according to NSO.

On August 2, 2013 Laguna 4th District Representative Sol Aragones filed House Bill 377, or the “Teen Pregnancy Prevention, Responsibility and Opportunity Act.” This Bill seeks information dissemination on the bad effects of teenage pregnancy and/or its prevention, to be carried out by the health department, authorized educational and public health agencies, and non-profit private entities.

Earlier in July, the Commission on Population (PopCom) allotted two million pesos for a study about teenage pregnancy in the Philippine context.

In some parts of the country, there have also been initiatives that focus on teenage pregnancy, such as PopCom’s “500 million girls in the world today: Investing in their rights, health, education and potentials” in Region VI, and the move to ban teenagers from motels and beach houses, as these venues offer privacy and secrecy that encourage teens to commit premarital sex that often lead to unwanted pregnancies.

When Bryan found out that Mina was pregnant, he felt fear – for himself and for Mina. Before telling their parents, they tried to abort the pregnancy through drinking concentrated fabric conditioner. Samantha, however, was strong; she held on.

When Mina’s parent found out, ‘tinakwil nila si Mina,’ Bryan said. He stood by her side and faced the consequences of that lapse.

He immediately looked for job that could sustain their everyday living. For months, they were good. But when Samantha started to grow and learn to walk, Mina started to come home late and leave her child to the care of a 12-year-old babysitter.

She later found an older man with a stable job, and left Bryan. She took their daughter when she left.

He felt betrayed; he prioritized Mina and Samantha over his siblings, and even fought for them against Mina’s parents, but it seemed that these were not enough. Mina left, and this drove him to work harder. Even though his request to see Samantha was refused, he persisted, knowing it’s his right as a father.

Compared to the man Mina lives with now, Bryan said he is “nothing.” He could never afford what this man could give his daughter since his wages are just enough to cover their daily needs. But he never regretted having Samantha because he valued her more than anything.

His contribution to that part of her story

What Bryan regretted was loving Mina.

“Pareho sila ni Mama,” he said.

Bryan’s story shows that males are also affected in issues that concern females, especially teenage pregnancy. This is the often overlooked part of the phenomenon, as what The United States Office of Adolescent Health (USOAH) stated in its website: “Research and data collection efforts have tended to focus on female adolescents. As a result, less is known about the strategies and approaches for effectively engaging males in preventing teen pregnancies or even about their attitudes toward being a father.”

Since behavior of adolescent males is also important in preventing teenage pregnancy, according to USOAH, it is good to involve them in the campaign for responsible sexual behavior, as what Sonestain et al say in the book “Focusing On Kid.” While adolescent males rarely take part in raising babies, Sonestein believes that they should be included in campaigns for the prevention of teen pregnancy because of these 10 reasons:

1. It takes two to create a pregnancy.

2. Boys and men should be held responsible for their sexual behavior. Just because they cannot get pregnant does not mean they should be irresponsible.

3. Boys and men want to be more responsible about their sexual behavior. In one recent survey, more than 90 percent of teen males agreed that male responsibilities include talking about contraception before sex, using contraception to protect against unwanted pregnancy, and taking responsibility for a child they father.

4. Most boys and men are more likely to make better decisions about sex if they are given reasons to do so and are treated with respect.

5. Male partners strongly influence what decisions teen girls make about sex and contraception, especially when they are older than the teen girl.

6. Older men who become sexually involved with much younger minor girls can be held criminally accountable through statutory rape laws.

7. Prevention programs that provide mentoring and youth development activities can help young men by offering education, skills, employment opportunities, and hope, all of which build self-respect.

8. Building young men’s self respect helps them respect their partners.

9. Older teens and adult men are an untapped resource as leaders for teen pregnancy prevention programs.

10. Involving boys and men makes programming for girls more effective by addressing both sides of the teen pregnancy.

NYC Commissioner Cendaña also believes that the key to preventing teenage pregnancy is educating not only one party but both parties. In one interview with ABS-CBN network, he said: “Studies have shown that if teens know the consequences of their actions, chances are they will be more responsible when it comes to sex.”

Cendaña called on government and stakeholders to “address [present] situation given the [current] context, not the context 10 or 20 years before.”  (Andrea Joyce Arbues)

by Eva Joyce S. Valenzuela

[NEWSFEATURE] “A stepping stone for young journalists,” said Mrs. Evelyn Navia, school paper adviser-in-charge in Cluster 2 and English head teacher in Los Baños National High School, as she discussed the 2013 Division Training-Workshop on Campus Journalism on August 28, Wednesday.

The Laguna Association of Secondary Schools Paper Adviser, Incorporated (LASSPAI) and Department of Education (DepEd) organized the training-workshops in preparation for the Division Secondary Schools Press Conference on October 17-19.

LASSPAI officers, members, and advisers gathered for a preliminary meeting on July 24 in Nicolas Galvez Memorial National High School. Details were finalized by Mrs. Erma Valenzuela as Education Program Supervisor (EPS I) in English, together with Mr. Jonathan H. Marquez, Mrs. Evelyn Navia, Mr. Mark Anthony Idang, and Mrs. Theodora Salamat in the DepEd Division Office last July 31, 2013.

Mrs. Valenzuela explained that the  Division Training on Campus Journalism would give the potential writers the opportunity to discover and to strengthen their journalistic skills. In addition, this training was also designed to help the school paper advisers to decide and to place the writer appropriate to his category.

The division training was divided into two types, namely team category and individual category. Under the team category are collaborative which requires each school to submit a mock paper at the end of the training; and radio broadcasting and scriptwriting which is composed of seven members: a scriptwriter, anchor, infomercials, news presenters, and a technical director). In the Individual category, it covers, news writing, sports writing, feature writing, editorial writing, copy reading, editorial cartooning, and photojournalism.

The division training was conducted by cluster to allow small group discussions providing close interaction between lecturers and the participants. It also offers achievable objectives of the training since in each cluster, students will be observed, taught, and assessed properly.

On August 10 and 17, clusters 1 and 2 conducted the training-workshop in Jacobo Z. Gonzales Memorial National High School (Jacobo MNHS) and Los Baños Community National High School (LBCNHS). The training aimed to expose the student-journalists and school paper advisers (SPA) with the new trends and practices and guidelines in campus journalism; assess the training needs of the participants as supported by their outputs; and provide our student-writers the opportunity to hone their journalistic skills.

About 800 students represented cluster 1, composed of the public and private secondary schools in San Pedro, Binan, and Cabuyao. On the other hand, 401 students represented cluster 2, which covered public and private secondary schools in Los Baños, Bay, Calauan, Victoria, and Pila.

Mr. Jonathan H. Marquez of Pulo National High School was head of the organizing committee for cluster 1 training-workshop where each school was assigned a room to work in.

In cluster 2, the participants were grouped based on their respective categories allowing students from different schools to train together. According to Mrs. Navia of the Los Baños National High School and cluster 2 organizing committee head, this type of grouping will increase the fighting spirit of everyone where they can feel the training already as a competition which in return will motivate them to listen and participate in the lectures and workshop.

The training resource persons selected have who worked with the National level speakers or judges and were also the facilitators of the Division of Laguna.  The resource persons were requested to submit a Structural Learning Episodes (SLE) which consists of the flow of the speaker’s lecture, PowerPoint presentations, and exercises. The lecture discussions followed the 4As: Activity, Analysis, Abstraction, and Application. Each lecture was allotted two hours, one and a half hours for the discussion and the remaining 30 minutes for the workshop.

During the Radio Scriptwriting and Broadcasting lecture, students were able to identify the characters they fit in. It was like a skills orientation as well as voice training. During the session on photojournalism, the participants were strictly prohibited to use DSLR. Digital camera with minimum of 12 megapixels and maximum of 16 megapixels was be used.

Speakers for the individual category included Ms. Sherryl Ann M. Dadal of Sampaguita NHS in San Pedro for newswriting, Joselie G. Quemada of San Juan NHS in Kalayaan for editorial writing, Mr. Jonathan H. Marquez of Pulo NHS in Cabuyao for editorial cartooning. In feature writing, Marza Palentino of Philippine High School for the Arts in Los Baños trained the student while Mr. Paolo Manuel C. Fule of Plaridel NHS in Nagcarlan served as the resource person for sports writing. Lastly, the trainer for copy reading and headline writing was Mrs. Evelyn P. Navia of Los Baños NHS.

From the outputs of the participants who joined the individual category, top three best outputs were chosen. In cluster 1, 12 best outputs were chosen in each class, English and Filipino. These best outputs are selected based on the National Guidelines.  A total of 48 best outputs were recognized in cluster 1. On the other hand, there were 42 best outputs. From the winners, facilitators have observed that most of them are already experienced writers who attend the regional level and even the national level.

Mrs. Valenzuela explained that the large turnout of participants became the challenge for the training-workshop. The organizers created additional classes and invited other speakers to accommodate the journalists and to have quality training to address such concern. Despite such limitation, the participants found the training beneficial not only in honing their journalism skills but also for gaining new friends from other schools.

“Masaya po,” Kristine Faith B. Manayam  of Nicolas N. Galvez Memorial National High School said regarding the workshops she attended. The journalists-in-training said that their passion for writing increased after the training-workshop they attended. “Wag susuko!” was Kristine and her schoolmate Robert Borihaga’s  realization after the training.

by Krizza Lei T. Amoyan

[NEWSFEATURE] “You can only change the leadership during elections,” says Los Baños COMELEC officer Randy Banzuela as he encourages the voters to actively participate in the upcoming Barangay and SK elections.

Despite calls to postpone the 2013 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) has held the voters’ registration almost a month ago. Few weeks before the election day, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) is now gearing up for the planning and preparation for the smooth implementation of the elections in Los Baños this coming October 28.

Gearing up: Preparations for October 2013 elections

The voters’ registration was held last July 22-31 simultaneously in different barangays in the country. Voters for the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) include the youth whose age ranges from 15-17, while those for the barangay election are composed of voters aged 18 and above.

For this year’s SK and barangay elections, the municipality of Los Baños has 30, 032 registered SK voters and 56, 856 regular [barangay] voters, this was as recorded by Commission on Elections (COMELEC)-Los Baños as of August 2013.

After the voters’ registration, the list of voters are then encoded for a better organization of the election files. With a thorough checking of the voters profile and after removing some of the deceased and transfer voters from the list, the voters tally is then submitted to the COMELEC main office.

After the submission of the voters tally, the COMELEC then assigned and prepared the polling precincts. According to Elections Officer Banzuela, there are 436 originally established precincts in Los Baños but as these precincts were clustered, only 182 cluster precincts remained, with each polling precinct  accommodating a maximum of four hundred voters.

“These are only the initial preparations, so for now, our priority is the organization of the list of voters and the polling precincts, and the preparation of those who will sit as board of election tellers,” says Banzuela.

The filling of candidacy will run from October 15 -17 and the campaign period will run from October 18 to 27.

With the preparation for the upcoming election is the strict implementation of the election laws as provided for in Article XXII of the Election Code of the Philippines.

• Common poster area. COMELEC requires every barangay to designate a common poster area within the community where they will post their campaign materials. This is to prevent the candidates from posting everywhere (e.g. Walls, private establishments, lamp posts), as well as for easy cleaning after the election. Posting outside the designated common poster areas will be illegal.
• Gun ban. COMELEC strictly implements the gun ban as early as September 2013 to prevent election related killings and to maintain the peace and order. The gun ban prohibits the carrying of firearms outside the residence or place of business. Any person who, although  possessing a permit to carry firearms, carries any firearms outside his residence or place of business during the election period, unless authorized in writing by the Commission will be charged.
• Alcohol ban. Selling, buying, or taking intoxicating liquor a day before and on election day is strictly prohibited. This is implemented to prevent election related crimes and violence, and to ensure a peaceful election.
• Distribution of campaign paraphernalia on election day. The election code prohibits the solicitation of votes or undertaking of any propaganda, on the day of election, for or against any candidate within the polling precinct. Electoral campaigns are strictly prohibited on the day of election because this may affect the decision of the voters.

Any person who will be found guilty of any election offense will be charged with the violation of election laws and may be punished by paying a fine or imprisonment.

The Team: Agencies and offices involved in the preparation

“During the election period, almost all government agencies are deputized by the COMELEC,” said COMELEC officer Banzuela.

Most especially, the Philippine National Police (PNP) is deputized for the peace and order. They are the ones who are assigned to monitor violations regarding the gun ban and alcohol ban, as well as to watch out for election related crimes.

The board of election tellers, composed of the teachers from the Department of Education (DepEd), are the ones who are expected to facilitate in the voting process and to monitor the honest outcome of votes.

The local government unit (LGU) is also involved in providing budget for the election. According to Banzuela, there is a portion which will be shouldered by the LGU regarding the funds for the cash payments of the board of election tellers and other expenses.

What we’re lacking: Election problems and issues

The ten-day registration period has been a national issue and many complaints from the voters have been reported, but Banzuela justifies that the ten-day period is just enough for the voters’ registration. He added that the COMELEC-Los Baños does not receive complaints from the voters regarding this issue, the “candidates” are the ones who are complaining.

Another issue is that there are these “candidates” who are starting they’re campaigns as early as now [before the campaign period]. “Hindi naman namin mapagsabihan dahil hindi pa namin sila sakop, they have not yet filed their certificate of candidacy, until such time na hindi sila nakakapagfile ng candidacy wala kaming magagawa”, explains Bazuela.

Also, one of the common issues during the election period is vote buying and vote selling. According to Banzuela, he has heard of many cases regarding this issue but no one is proven guilty. “Ang nagiging problema kasi ay yung mga witness, dahil sa haba ng proseso tinatamad na sila,” he said.

Information dissemination has also been one of the problems during the elections. Voter’s information regarding those who are running has been a problem because they do not know the candidates.

Banzuela doubts that the information presented in the campaign materials are sufficient for the voters to know the platform or programs that a certain candidate plans to implement. “Ang nangyayari ngayon, yung pagkatao ang pinagbabasehan, kung mabait ba siya, o pala-bigay ba yan, without even knowing or analyzing if he will be capable of the position he is running for,” explained Banzuela.

by Eunese Irish A. Garcia

The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Los Baños is all set with the preparations for the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) and Barangay Elections 2013 on October 28.

According to Elections Officer Randy Banzuela, COMELEC has already created the project of precincts that will handle the election period. With 56, 856 registered voters in Los Baños, COMELEC is also reviewing the voters’ list to determine the active and inactive voters and the ones who are really registered in the barangays.

“Kasi may mga nagrereklamo na nawawala ‘yung pangalan nila sa listahan sa mga designated precincts sa barangay nila, kaya ngayon pa lang inaayos na namin dito,” Banzuela added.

With the 56,856 registered voters to date; 54,984 of which voted during the the last elections; COMELEC expects an increase of voters’ turnout given the 3,099 newly registered voters.

Manual voting will be used during the elections since the P-COS (Precinct-Count Optical Scanners) machines will be kept again for the next national elections. The elections officer also explained that since there are only a small number of voters during SK and Barangay elections, it is more appropriate to use the manual voting.

“We are hoping for more improvements during the elections so that we may serve our residents better,” Banzuela explained. He also encouraged residents to volunteer and help out during the elections. “May pinadadala rin naman ang PPCRV at NAMFREL during those times, but their primary concern is the total number of votes,” he added.

Aling Imelda Banyares, 43, a fruit vendor from Brgy. Timugan, said that she and her daughter, who registered last month, are going to vote. “Kahit ganito lang sa ngayon ang buhay namin, gusto naming bumoto para may magbago at may ikaunlad sa lugar namin,” she said.

Age is not a matter of concern in exercising the right to vote as with the case of Mang Roger Maningas, 75, a canteen concessionaire in Brgy. Timugan. Mang Roger shared that all of members of his family are going to vote because they want their voices heard. “Sa awa naman ng Diyos, laging payapa ang lugar namin, kasi magaling naman ang mga nabobotong kapitan [ng barangay],” the old man replied.

Some residents however, will not be able to cast their votes this October. Aling Merlinda Limco, 43, a housewife will not be able to vote because she was reached by the cut-off last registration. “Kung pinaabot sana ako, makakaboto sana ako, gusto ko rin naming bumoto. Eh siyempre, sa ganoong paraan ko lang masasabi yung gusto kong sabihin,” she said.

Diane Pombo, 18, was also reached by the cut-off and was not also able to register. Pombo will however, volunteer during the elections. “Okay lang kahit di ako naabutan basta gusto ko makatulong ako sa eleksyon sa October. Sayang kasi pagkakataon para mapakita ko na residente talaga ako ng Los Baños,” Diane said. She also encouraged others to volunteer for their rcommunity. “Minsan lang naman ‘to, di ba?”

The local government of Los Banos is preparing for “Banamos Fun Run 2013” to be held on September 21 as part of the celebration of Banamos Festival this month.

The run is divided into four categories: 3 km, 5 km, 10 km, and 15 km. The planned route starts from the new LB municipal hall in Barangay Timugan and ends at the University of the Philippines Open University in Barangay Maahas.

Registration is Php 200 for the first two categories, and Php 300 for the last two. Councilor Jonjie Oliva, project head, said that proceeds will benefit the scholars of the municipal government of Los Banos.

“This event will not only benefit our scholars but will also promote brotherhood and friendly competition among citizens of Los Banos,” said Renee-vic Villanueva, legislative staff of Councilor Oliva.

Cash prizes await top finishers: Php 3,000 for the first placer; Php 2,000 for the second placer; and Php1,000 for the third placer. Interested runners may register at the office of Councilor Oliva until August 31. (with reports from Earl Gio Manuel)