Press Release
July 19, 2007

ESCUDERO REMAINS WITH THE OPPOSITION

Neophyte Senator Francis "Chiz" Escudero today said he is with and will remain with the opposition. This after critics accused him of jumping ship to the administration after he pledged support for Senator Manny Villar's bid for the Senate Presidency.

Escudero said he chose not to answer such accusations which were hurled last week because of two reasons: first, because former President Joseph Estrada requested him not to in Erap's desire to keep the opposition intact; second, according to Escudero, is that as much as possible, he wanted to avoid bickering with fellow opposition members because it doesn't help the group at all. "For those who accused me of turncoatism, please allow instrospection. 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?"

The neophyte senator said the issue of him supporting Villar's bid does not make or break his stand with the opposition block. "It is but a natural thing in any organization, members do not agree altogether on one or two issues. It is incumbent upon members that they rally together on the things that they all believe in, and to settle or even set aside things they disagree on. This is how you keep an organization strong and effective."

Critics hit Escudero for rallying behind Villar saying that a vote for Villar means a vote for the administration since the administration block had already threw in their support to the incumbent Senate President.

"I'll say it again, I ran with Villar under one banner, when we saw that we we're winning, I gave him my word that I will support him, because he is the incumbent senate president and we both belong to the opposition. No one else had signified any interest in the Senate presidency at that time."

"Had this been a vote about any particular issue, like the cheaper medicine bills, would it be right for me not to vote for it just because administration senators are voting for it as well?"

"I had always been with the opposition and I will continue to be with the opposition. It is my desire to keep the opposition intact and we will consolidate our strength to further issues like the re-opening and concluding of the Hello Garci investigation, the Jocjoc Bolante investigation. We still rally behind a common ground, like our continuous effort to keep watch on any and all abuses and corruption of this administration." Support for these, Escudero said, would be the true measure of a real opposition. "We are in unison that it is indeed upon the unity and strength of the opposition wen reap our victory in the last polls. This is how we are going to be at the Senate."

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