I fully respect and accept the CA vote. Rest assured that I will not go silently into the night. This is not my swan song. I’ve been an advocate for the environment long before my appointment as DENR Secretary, and I consider the results of the vote as just a small bump in the continuing road to my environmental advocacy. This will not be the last that you hear from me as far as protecting our beloved environment is concerned. Tuloy ang laban natin para sa kalikasan.

I’m very thankful to the CA members who supported my nomination and appointment. I consider you fellow advocates and passionate champions of the environment. I feel your love and concern for the Filipino people. I will not forget your encouragement and support.

I will always be supportive of what’s right and deserving to our environment even when I go back to the private sector. We started something big, and we gave hope and excitement to millions of Filipinos who now believe we can do something concrete to reverse and fight environmental degradation.

The support and encouragement from the environmental sector – IPs, NGOS, advocates, social media warriors, plus the silent majority who support us but whose voices are drowned out by big business interests in the media, will never be forgotten. We have proved that we have a strong voice and the support of the majority of Filipinos. Let’s continue to be vigilant. Let’s continue the noble fight for the environment. I may not always lead, especially since I’ll be out of the DENR for now, but I will always be a partner in our shared and common advocacies para sa kalikasan.

I hope that whoever eventually gets to lead the DENR would not be beholden to any other interest than the environment and how to protect it, to ensure that generations of Filipinos to come will still be able to enjoy what diminishing resources we have now. It’s not too late to start.###