President Rodrigo Duterte clarified his stand on the SOGIE equality bill which is one of the top topics this month because of the viral incident of a trans woman blocked from using a bathroom for females.
In a post, Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) Commissioner Greco Belgica claimed that President Duterte said that he doesn’t want anyone to face inequality under his watch.
However, he said that he would not try to redefine “male” and “female” because of God and laws established in the country.
“Ang ayaw ko ay yung nang-aapi at naaapi because of their gender, religious belief, or status in life. Gusto ko pantay-pantay ang trato ng gobyerno sa tao,” Duterte said as quoted by Belgica.
“But I do not wish to redefine what a male and female is as defined by God, norms and what our laws have already established,” the President added.
The President also said that he would still protect the rights of all Filipinos.
“I will forever be the protector of the mistreated, weak, the poor and helpless Filipinos regardless of gender, social status and their religious belief,” he said.
Belgica said that Duterte made the statements during his conversation with the President and Senator Christopher “Bong” Go during a discussion about SOGIE bill.
Duterte is known for pushing an ordinance to protect the LGBT community in Davao City.
Meanwhile, several SOGIE advocates wanted to push reforms like allowing the parents to put x to their newborn childbirth certificate to show that they’re not assuming the gender of their baby.