Births in Baguio drop by 2.92 percent

BAGUIO CITY – The Local Civil Registry Office reported were 9,747 registered live births in the city last year which is 2.92 percent lower compared to the 10,040 live births that were registered the previous year.
Local Civil Registrar Maria Bernardita Tabin said that of the total live births, 15 babies were delivered from mothers of age group less than 15 years old, while 878 babies or 9 percent were born from mothers 19 years old and below.
She admitted that the percentage of illegitimacy remains high which totaled to 4,687 or 48 percent of the total live births.
On the other hand, the city civil registrar disclosed there were a total of 1,738 registered marriages in the city last year which was a decrease of 6.16 percent as compared to the 1,852 marriages registered the previous year.
Of the total marriages registered, there were more couples that preferred the civil rights with 42.35 percent over the 39.18 percent solemnized under the church rites.
Last year, there was a total of 2,997 registered deaths in the city wherein male deaths comprised the bigger percentage of the deceased which was 57.52 percent or a total of 1,794 as compared to female deaths of 1,273 or 42.48 percent.
According to her, other vital events in the life of a person such as legitimation, acknowledgement, and affidavit to use the surname of the father that were registered in the Local Civil Registry |Office totaled 4,664 while marriage applications that were received and processed totaled 1,486.
Under the quasi-judicial services of the office, petitions of change of first name reached 112, for correction of clerical error – 906 and for migrant petitions – 42.
Republic Act 3753 mandates the registration of all vital events in the life of an individual from birth to death, including the change in civil status taking place in appropriate civil registry books.
Under the said law, the Local Civil Registrar is the office in charge with the duty of implementing the provisions of the Civil Registry Law and its implementing rules and regulations in the city or municipality.
Tabin claimed that vital events in the life of a person starts from birth where the child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have the right from birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality and as far as possible, the right to know and be cared for by his or her parents and that birth may occur in the hospital, clinic, at home or in a vehicle on a trip and registration period for birth is within 30 days and beyond the same, registration is considered late.
She said the certificate of marriage must be registered in the same office within 15 days for marriages with license and within 30 days for marriage of exceptional character.
The city civil registrar explained that death refers to the permanent disappearance of all evidence of life at any time after live birth has taken place and no man body shall be buried unless the proper death certificate has been presented and recorded in the same office and it shall be the responsibility of the physician who last attended the deceased or the administrator of the hospital or clinic where the person died to prepare the certificate of earth and to certify as to the cause of death./Dexter A. See