Thank you for that kind introduction. I seldom accept speaking invitations, except if it comes from Catholic educators, because having endured nine years of homilies by the Christian Brothers, and six years of sermons by the Jesuits, I have always looked forward to returning the

Let us not make the already twice-postponed October 2016 barangay elections the most aborted in history. As it stands now, the COMELEC is ready, the communities are ready, the candidates are ready, the country is ready, for the scheduled May 14 elections. Only some congressmen

Mr. President: I have been advocating for a PhilHealth-based national ID card long before I was elected to this body. Years ago, when the plan to create a national ID system was driven by security concerns, I countered that such an ID will only garner high social acceptability if

The last time I stood here, I exhorted us to use, so to speak, our coconuts to drop the perpetual approach in rehabilitating the coconut industry and opt for a faster reconstruction timetable with a fixed deadline. I said that if an industry is in crisis, efforts to revive it

An Act Amending Sections 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 18, 19 And 21 Of Republic Act No. 10591 Otherwise Known As “The Comprehensive Firearms And Ammunition Regulation Act” The proposed measure seeks to achieve the following: Rationalize the standards and requisites for

There is no debate as to the need to plow back the coco levy collections to the people. The divergence is on how to do it. I want a quicker disbursement schedule, which will disburse bigger amounts in a shorter time. If the industry is in ICU, it should get a massive infusion,

Remarks of Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph G. Recto Mr. President: When it comes to diagnosing the ills of the coconut industry, I share the same findings with my esteemed colleagues. Nine out of 10 live below poverty line. The irony of their penury is best captured by this

Mr. President: There is a saying that in making laws, it is the politicians who write the bill, but it is the people who foot the bill. Campaign promises are free; redeeming them is what is costly. Lawmakers get the credit, but it is the taxpayers who raise the cash. Yes, the

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto today backed plans for the Philippines to jointly prospect for oil in the West Philippine Sea with “China and other countries” for as long as it is “between private parties and that we won’t be giving away the deed to the area.” Recto said

Government should see to it that rice prices will not spike by flooding the market with the fourth quarter bumper palay harvest, because that is the only way to calm the public that TRAIN has not triggered an uptick in the prices of goods, Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto