Article by MYLENE JOY L. MOLINA School Head

1. Antagonistic Towards “Anti-Palo”
Mylene Joy Lacsao-Molina
School Head
Believing that parents have the right to discipline their children, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte has
officially vetoed the anti-corporal punishment bill or “anti-palo” bill on February 28, 2019, a measure filed by
Senator Risa Hontiveros. This decision by the President however is seen on a positive note on the side of most
parents and teachers.
The bill seeks to put a stop on the practice of beating children and other similar physical forms of
punishment to discipline them, hence promoting positive and non-violent discipline of children. A 2011 Pulse
Asia survey supports this idea showing that 66 percent or two in every three parents use corporal punishment
to impose discipline on their kids. Though millions of parents and teachers may fall guilty on this, they believe
otherwise.
Eight of 10 parents still agree with the idea that sometimes their kids need a little spanking or hitting
by stick depending on the gravity of the offense. They insist that kids won’t hate them if only kids are taught
and explained why they needed to do that. Some cite the old maxim, “to spare the rod is to spoil the child.”
The teachers on the other hand are on the side of the President. They said there is absolutely no need
for the “anti-palo” bill, since there have been similar policies implemented by DepEd and the LGU such as
the Child Friendly School System and the Child Protection Policy. These regulations are standard strict
because they scrap off the teachers of their authority to discipline their pupils because one false accusation
can be used against them. Thus, the law is either misused or abused by some parents and students. Teaching
has therefore become quite a challenge for some teachers due to poor classroom management and discipline
brought about by these child protection laws. As a result teachers feel threatened and merely just teach the
lessons without molding the behaviors of students. Teachers are not even allowed to use any pointers for
emphasis (no, not even their fingers), raise their voice or their eyebrows. Now, what can a teacher do? Imagine
walking in a zoo with all the wild animals uncaged!
As a parent and a school administrator myself who was once a classroom teacher, I believe the “anti-
palo” bill would have been redundant and unnecessary. One, it tramples on my right as a parent to discipline
my child on my way, the best way possible. Cliché it may seem but no parent wants harm for their child. Two,
it makes teachers inutile of their position and power to impose discipline and management in class. Teachers
are the most patient professionals due to the fact that they have been trained on child psychology and human
behavior. They are considered second parents so they need not be reminded of how to take care of kids. Three,
children nowadays are far different during our time. The “millennial” as they are popularly called are “lazy,
impatient, entitled, assertive, impulsive,” so they need people to guide, discipline, and train them in the right
way “so that when they are old they will not depart from it.”