It’s around 3pm in the afternoon when a friend texted me about the so called “Anti-Planking Act of 2011” that the Quezon City 2nd District Congressman Winston “Winnie” Castelo filled in the Congress. At first I thought it was a joke, until I saw everyone posting their opinions on twitter with the hashtag “#AntiPlankingActof2011” and everyone is furious about the said proposal. According to Rep. Castelo this is to answer on the recent event where students joined “Tigil-Pasada” protest of Piston participated and did planking or the act of lying face down and that time it was in the España Boulevard in Manila. The protest took place last September 19 and the students who joined where the members of the League of Filipino Students (LFS) and Anakbayan.
In Castelo’s official website, the Anti-Planking Act of 2011 aims to prescribe a universal code of student conduct hereby planking by a student or group of students during street rallies or similar protest actions as a form of redress of grievance be strictly prohibited and applying appropriate sanctions. Here is the main proposal:
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:
SECTION 1. This Act shall be known as the “Anti-Planking Act of 2011”.
SEC. 2. A universal Code of Student Conduct is hereby prescribed where planking as a form of redress of grievance be strictly prohibited and appropriate sanctions be applied for violations thereof.
SEC. 3. Under this Act, planking is when a student or group of students lies face down in unusual locations especially in streets or other public places, keeping the hands along the body and the feet outstretched and especially where such act is meant as a form of redress of grievance against government.
SEC. 4 Every bonafide student from any school, college or university shall conduct himself with high degree of discipline and propriety.
SEC. 5. The Department of Education in the case of elementary and high school students and the Commission on Higher Education in the case of college students shall draft a universal Code of Student Conduct to carry out the provisions of this Act.
Further, DepEd and CHED, respectively shall issue appropriate rules and regulations to effectively carry out intent and purpose of this Act.
SEC. 6. This Act shall take effect ninety (90) days after its publication in the Official Gazette and in at least three (3) newspapers of general circulation.
I have the same reaction like the others, I find it unnecessary to create a bill such as the “Anti-Planking Act of 2011” where I think there are more bills and projects that the members should be doing for the welfare of their respective districts. I had witnessed several protest, I saw some protestors lying on the ground, lying at their back or facing the ground which they call now planking. But let’s go on the root why these things happen, protestors on the street doing their own method and ways on showing their disapproval or disappointment on the government and agencies. Planking is just a method, the best way to answer the protest is to create a good project that the people really need which targets the concern on housing, jobs, education, health, economics , poverty and so many more. Those things are better than the “Anti-Planking Act of 2011” and it answers more on the needs of those who goes to the street for protest. It’s just like beating around the bush; you are giving the things that the people don’t really need at all.
