Thank you, Majority Leader, Thank you, Mr. Senate President Nais ko lamang pong magbigay ng maikling manipestasyon. Nais ko pong magpasalamat sa mga kapwa ko miyembro ng Senado na nagbigay po ng tiwala sa akin sa 19th at 20th Congress.
Nais ko din po pasalamatan ang mga opisyal at kawani ng Senado. Karangalan kong pagsilbihan kayo at manilbihan kasama kayo nitong nagdaang taon.
I serve at the pleasure, Mr. President, of the majority and understand and respect the decision of the majority of my colleagues. I hold no grudges. I hold no ill feelings.
I congratulate Senator Vicente “Tito” Sotto III on his election as Senate President and I wish you well, Mr. Senate President. Nandito lamang po ako bilang ordinaryong miyembro para pagsilbihan at paglingkuran kayo sa anumang kapasidad na pwede at kaya ko bilang bahagi ng Senadong ito.
During my tenure, Mr. President, the Senate did not shy away from confronting the difficult questions facing our nation. We passed a record number of laws that helped uplift the lives of our countrymen. We conducted hearings that unearthed corruption on a scale rarely seen before. And, in doing so we remind the public that accountability is not a mere empty rhetoric but a duty that we must all uphold.
Maski na paano, sa ilalim po ng aking panunungkulan at sa pangunguna ni Senator Rodante Marcoleta, may ilang bagay po tayong nakamit at nagawa:
- Nakapag-salita na ng buong-buo kaninang umaga si Congressman Toby Tiangco at nabanggit lahat nang nais niyang sabihin na hindi nya nasabi sa kabilang Kamara.
- Nasabi na rin po Ginoong Pangulo ang the name that cannot be mentioned, ang pangalan ni Speaker Martin Romualdez at Congressman Zaldy Co sa pamamagitan ng paghe-heariong kanina pong hapon.
- And as a final act earlier Mr. President, I signed upon the request of Senator Marcoleta the contempt order of Assistant District Engineer Bryce Hernandez putting him under detention already here in the Senate.
I am proud of what the Senate has accomplished together, and I trust that the spirit of transparency and courage that have been displayed by this Chamber will be sustained. Sana po ipagpatuloy natin ito. Let justice and the rule of law be done and followed “though the heavens may fall.”
Thank you again Mr. President and please accept once again my warmest congratulations. Congratulations Mr. President.