It’s Showtime host Vice Ganda praised by netizens for highlighting the importance of passing the proposed SOGIE bill in the country.
During the Miss Q and A segment on August 23, a gay contestant revealed that a school denied her application despite her qualifications due to her gender.
“Okay sa kanila ang matanggap ako dahil sa credentials na mayroon ako. Pero tinanong ako kung ‘Willing ka bang magpagupit, magsuot ng panlalaki.’ Parang ang hirap sa kalooban kasi nga pinaghirapan ko kung ano mayroon ako ngayon,” the contestant said.
Vice Ganda proceeded to use the story as a reason why the SOGIE bill is needed in the country.
“Para mawalan ng diskriminasyon kung ano man ang gender identity at sexual orientiation mo. Dapat hindi makikita yung tao doon sa kanyang SOGIE,” Vice Ganda said.
“At dahil wala pang SOGIE bill, may mga katulad niya na nadidiscriminate at hindi naipapakita ang full potentials ng dahil sa kanilang gender identity,” he added.
The SOGIE Equality Bill seeks to penalize discrimination against people based on their SOGIE (sexual orientation, gender, identity, and expression).
The contestant also revealed that teaching is her passion and that she educates street children for free.
Social media was all praises for Vice Ganda.
THAT’S WHY NAPAKA IMPORTANTE NG SOGIE BILL SA PILIPINAS.
Dahil maraming magagaling at may potential sa LGBTQIA+ Community pero hindi sila nabibigyan ng opportunity sa field na gusto nila dahil sa Gender Identity na pinili nila. #ShowtimeFUNigurado #SOGIEBILL #SogieEquality pic.twitter.com/3srGYc0vRz
— Miss Ge ✨ (@itsmissge) August 23, 2022
Viewers lauded the comedian for using his “influence” productively.
Vice Ganda educating about SOGIE on a noontime show thats how you should use your influence.👏🏻👏🏻 #ShowtimeFUNigurado
— JAMES ʕ⁎̯͡⁎ʔ༄ (@JamesMarion20) August 23, 2022
Vice Ganda advocating for the SOGIE bill again! On National TV! THANK YOU!#ShowtimeFUNigurado #ViceGanda
— Reese (@ViFeelings) August 23, 2022
https://twitter.com/viceaesthetic/status/1561960220670464000?s=20&t=cZI0mCJFpJxg_TWJTKRLew
Pass the SOGIE BILL now 🏳️🌈 thanks meme @vicegandako 👏🏼👌🏼 #ShowtimeFUNIgurado
— winyuuuuu ✨♐️ (@winyuuuuu34) August 23, 2022
Vice Ganda using her platform to educate about the sogie bill yes miss ma'am
— men are trash (@Ilysmvi1) August 23, 2022
Salamat @vicegandako sa pagpapaliwanag tungkol sa SOGIE BILL .
— 𝐃𝐨𝐧-𝐃𝐨𝐧 𝐁𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐲𝐚 (@Don8don3) August 23, 2022
During President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s first State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 25, he failed to address the SOGIE bill.
“Pagtitibayin natin ang programa sa violence against women and their children, kabilang na ang counselling para sa mga biktima, katuwang ang ating mga LGU,” Marcos had said.
Nongovernmental organization EnGendeRights said that more could be done with crimes related to gender-based violence.
“There are many perpetrators of sexual assault who are at large, and we need intensified efforts to arrest them,” said EnGendeRights executive director Clara Rita Padilla.
The group claimed that a woman is raped every hour in the Philippines.
“LGBTIQ people suffer discrimination and violence at the very hands of their own parents and family, their schools and employers, and in their own communities. They are subjected to rape, torture, murder, violence, and abuse because of their SOGIE, and experiences of discrimination and violence also lead to suicides of LGBTIQ people.”
“It is time that our national laws clearly provide protection for LGBTIQ people against discrimination and violence, otherwise LGBTIQ people will continue to suffer human rights violations with impunity, and the Philippines will continually fall short of complying with its obligation to respect, protect, and fulfill human rights of LGBTIQ people,” Padilla said.
Leloy Claudio, the historian and Southeast Asian studies professor, shared the same sentiment.
“I was very critical of candidate Marcos when he was running, but I really liked the fact that he seemed very progressive on many social issues. He was open to gay unions, he was open to divorce, he was open to abortion for rape and incest, and I was hoping he would mention some of those socially progressive bits of legislation that he seemed partial to during the campaign,” Claudio said in a panel discussion.
Senators Risa Hontiveros and Robin Padilla have publicly said that passing the SOGIE bill is one of their priorities.