Speeches

Explanation of Vote: ESTABLISHING MALASAKIT CENTERS IN ALL DOH HOSPITALS Mr. President: For most of our countrymen, hospitalization is a luxury they cannot afford. The body may be willing, but the pocket is not. The result is that six in ten deaths in this country are unattended

Mr. President, my dear colleagues:I would like to begin with a confession: I am a gun owner. This is so because the Rectos are a family of shooting athletes who fought under the flag and brought home medals. My father was many times a Philippine champion and was an Olympian. Two

ROAD CRASHES HAVE BECOME A RAGING NATIONAL EPIDEMIC Five days ago, 40 Cagayano farmers clambered aboard a truck at the break of dawn to go to Tuguegarao to claim the corn seeds the DA was giving them for free. By nightfall, 19 of them lay dead after their rented ride plunged into

Magandang araw po sa inyong lahat. Nang natanggap ko ang inyong imbitasyon na magsalita sa pagtitipong ito, I treated it as an assignment. So like a student, I did my homework. So today I am ready for my recitation. And I can only hope that after I am done you will give me a

The truth is, Senator Tito is better in writing laws than in writing songs. He is better in putting ideas into policies than words into music. Yes, he might have built an impressive catalogue of songs, but this does not compare to his greatest hits in lawmaking. He has amassed

Explanation of Vote, Bicameral Conference Report : “An Act Liberalizing the Importation, Exportation and Trading of Rice, Lifting for the Purpose the Quantitative Import Restriction on Rice, and for Other Purposes” Mr. President, my dear colleagues: The bill has its merits but it

Mr. President, fellow senators, colleagues from the House: A fellow Batangueño based in Dubai, one of the fans of this “Twitter rockstar,” has texted me to confirm the nominee because he is “an OFW, an Outstanding Facebook Warrior.” For this is true, Mr. President: While we may

There is a Chinese saying that there are 1,000 prescriptions to a disease, but only one cure. And this bill, after diagnosing what ails the Philippine health system, collates the cures in one catalogue. The truth is, there is no cure-all, fast-acting miracle pill on how to make

Magandang umaga po sa inyong lahat. Sa ating mga panauhin, tuloy po kayo sa Batangas. Ito ang duyan ng magiting, tahanan ng masisipag, balwarte ng mga astig, at lugar ng mga magaganda at makikisig. Sa araw pong ito, lilikha tayo ng kasaysayan. Pero bago po natin gawin iyon,