A Pasig City congressional candidate in the Philippines is embroiled in controversy over a series of misogynist utterances made at campaign rallies, which sparked indignation and official investigation that may derail his candidacy for the May elections.
The Philippine Commission on Elections (Comelec) has served two show cause orders against candidate Christian Sia, after making allegedly offensive sexist comments towards women. The latest announcement, released Tuesday by Comelec’s Task Force to Protect Against Fear and Exclusion in Elections, is a comment about the physical appearance of his assistant while giving a campaign speech on April 3. Comelec chairman George Erwin Garcia said while no complaint was lodged by the assistant, the anti-discrimination task force would still seek action.
Sia had earlier caused outrage after he told an election caucus that he would “sleep with any single mother still having her period,” a comment that he later defended as a joke for “shock value.” His apology was, however, labeled as insincere by women’s rights groups.
Gabriela, the leading women’s advocacy partylist, has appealed to the Supreme Court to disbar Sia, terming his remarks “appalling, reprehensible, and deeply misogynistic.” Democratic Socialist Women of the Philippines had also condemned his remarks, issuing a warning that candidates such as Sia can introduce or back bills dangerous to women.
As a reaction to the controversy, Pasig councilor aspirant Shamcey Supsup-Lee declared her withdrawal from mayoral candidate Sarah Discaya’s campaign slate, including Sia, citing she could not condone language that belittled women.
Misamis Oriental governor Peter Unabia was also given a show cause notice by Comelec following his sexist remarks on female nursing students, where he implied that only pretty nurses should be employed. Unabia apologized afterwards.
Comelec persists in probing the two cases while the country anticipates a combative election campaign.
