An Act Replacing Quantitative Import Restrictions on Rice with Tariffs and Creating the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund, Amending for the Purpose Republic Act Number 8178, As Amended, and for Other Purposes This bill seeks to reduce household expenditure on rice by

Thank you. Magandang hapon po sa inyong lahat. I am happy and honored to be here today. What I’ve noticed is that there is no universal oath that binds politicians, unlike physicians who have their famous “First, do no harm” pledge. But if ever there will be a contest to coin one

Declaring Martial Law in Mindanao is a drastic and dramatic move. The solution needed to suppress the Abu Sayyaf and the Maute groups may need a drastic and dramatic move. I don’t have all the facts now but the President will have to explain his move to Congress and get our

If the middle class’s patriotism is soluble in taxes, the one of farmers can also dissolve in irrigation fees. For years, farmers have been clamoring for a moratorium on irrigation payments. Basically, what they seek is parity—to be treated the same way that conglomerates have

An Act Designating Casinos as Covered Persons under Republic Act No. 9160, otherwise known as the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2001, As Amended This bill seeks to address the deficiency in the Philippine legal framework against money laundering and to make it fully compliant with

An Act Prohibiting the Conversion of Irrigated and Irrgable Agricultural Lands for Non-Agricultural Uses, Amending for the Purpose Section 20 of Republic Act No. 7160, Otherwise Known as the Local Government Code of 1991 Consistent with the policy of the State to ensure the

Mr. Chairman, my dear colleagues : I stand with you today in endorsing the demotion of our dear colleague from a senator of the Republic to its top diplomat. His 19 years in Congress – 9 years in the Bigger House and 10 in the Better House – have prepared him for the grueling job

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto today cautioned the Duterte administration against the reported plan to take on the $500-million loan being offered by the Chinese government to modernize the Philippine military. “We must stop relying on foreign suppliers to modernize the

An Act Strengthening the Military and Uniformed Personnel Pension System, Creating the Military and Uniformed Personnel Insurance Fund, Amending Sections 3 and 24 of Republic Act Number 8291, and for Other Purposes This bill seeks to arrest an impending fiscal hemorrhage by