Francis Escudero

"We must review oil deregulation law and study the following: Removing VAT, lowering tariff, re-imposing price ceilings and prohibiting price manipulation. We should also spend on research and development to find alternate and indigenous sources of energy. The summit will not accomplish anything other than to highlight the ignorance and incompetence of energy officials who need to call a summit just to find out what’s going on."

"A gentleman treats his fellow man with fairness, always giving him the benefit of the doubt."

"For those who accused me of turncoatism, please allow introspection. Who is the real opposition? Those who do nothing but criticize and accuse fellow oppositionist thereby dividing the bloc? Or those who choose to keep their silence first and who carefully choose their words in their desire to keep the group together."

"Politics is not my end-all and be-all. I don't eat politics for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And when I sleep, I don't dream politics."

"I believe that every person is a new person in every waking morning. She will always have the chance in her remaining three years in office. The best legacy she can ever give is first, a clean and honest election wherein the people can freely choose and elect their leaders. Secondly, she should not think about nor wait for our people's sympathy and trust. Instead, she should let her performance speak for her. This might be her chance to win it all back. If not today, maybe in due time."

"What is good about campaigning using modern technology particularly the internet is that it is something new and does not cost anything. We have maximized the use of the internet in our campaigns. This is to set a trend and to show what is currently in demand among our youngsters."

"It would be best to show our people that we can deliver rather than make promises that we can't keep. There is just one thing that I will do however, and that is to bring the voice and the vote of our people to the Senate."

"If you look at the history of the United States, which has a long history of democracy, you would see they committed the same mistakes over and over until they finally learned from them. The same, I think, goes for the Philippines. Even you look older democracies in Europe, the same story would be true."

"The best evidence that we are still in a democracy is the fact that there is still an opposition."

"An ideal country means being able to equalize opportunity each Filipino so that if anyone should devote enough time and energy towards advancing himself, or improving the quality of life of his family or loved ones, he would be able to do so without any strings tying him down; without any hands holding him down. That would be the most ideal thing any official or president can give to his or her people."

"I am not afraid to lose because politics is not the air I'm breathing. In fact, I long for the day when I'm no longer in politics and will live a quiet and less complicated life - I won't use the word simple because I'm living a simple life now."

"Winning doesn't necessarily mean you're right. History will be a better judge of that. But that's the beauty of democracy — you believe what you believe, I believe what I believe, and as long as we're not hurting each other, that's fine. Placing a value judgement on a person's beliefs has no place in a democracy."

"I was once asked why I was always on the wrong side, I said, "probably not just on your side." In a democracy, there isn't supposed to be a wrong or right side. Just what the majority wants, nothing more."

"In democracy, it's a continuing struggle of convincing the other person to see things the way you do. You may succeed in doing that during one particular election then fail in the next."

"The younger you are, the easier it will be for you to adapt to a new lifestyle or to a new profession. The older you are, the more difficult it is. The thing to watch out for is, being eaten by the system. So if you look at our politicians now, you will see that the older ones have a harder time letting go. And when that happens, they lose their usefulness. The younger ones can handle change, and they can accept losing a position."

"It's true Senator Chiz is my friend, but for the nation, my reason for teaming up with him is personal trust. He is a person who can be trusted, a person who has experience and a person who has already done something for the people."

"Senator Chiz has always looked into the spending trends of agriculture agencies. He comes prepared. He knows his budget back and forth, inside and out, often more than the so-called budget and agri-sector experts themselves. We need Chiz in the budget talks. There's a big gaping hole when he's not there."

"Chiz is the only vice presidential candidate who has a firm grasp of the budget process, and that would make him an invaluable asset if he were to go to the Executive Department."

"When my mom was at her lowest in the senatorial surveys at number 28, no one was coming to support her, when only our grandma Susan Roces was her biggest financial supporter and I was her first campaign staff, Chiz already supported our mom. That’s why Chiz is so important. He lent his machinery. He was the one who brought her to the provinces when no one else did; that says something about the character of Chiz."