THE State of the Nation Address (SONA) of the President is not just a customary congressional event at every start of the legislature’s regular session. It is mandated by the 1987 Constitution, which says in Article VII, Section 23: “The President shall address the Congress at the opening of its regular session.”
The constitutional requirement has an official purpose and significance, too, which is to allow the sitting President to report on the state of the Philippines, to push forward the government’s agenda for the coming year, and to propose legislative measures to Congress.
President Duterte’s 6th and last SONA is scheduled at around 4 p.m. today at the Batasang Pambansa in Quezon City. There, he is expected to talk about the most important issues confronting the nation at the moment — the looming surge of COVID-19 cases with the confirmed local transmission of the Delta variant, the mass vaccination campaign, the continuing fight against official corruption and illegal drugs, and the Duterte administration’s foreign policy, which necessarily includes the West Philippine Sea and relations with the US.
‘This year, an early comment from opposition leader Vice President Leni Robredo stood out: “People will not be content to listen to achievements… Since we are in the middle of a pandemic, it’s important to hear an honest assessment from the President.”’
With these many potential topics, the Chief Executive is also expected to intersperse the Address with reports and inputs from various departments of the Executive branch, dutifully crafted by his cabinet secretaries, to assure the people that his government is performing its mandate.
As this SONA comes a few months before the start of an election year, and with President Duterte seriously planning to hold on to power even as the next vice president, it is not surprising if he bloats and boasts of his so-called accomplishments — in the areas of infrastructure, transportation, energy, environment, and social welfare. Health, labor, education and economy may suffer the least mention, understandably so because these are areas where the government’s weakness lies.
Along with the national appropriations bill, Duterte needs also to endorse to Congress the five remaining priority bills that the Palace is backing as set by the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC). These are the proposed Virology Institute Act, Center for Disease Control Act, Amendments to the Continuing Professional Development Act of 2016, Bureau of Immigration Modernization Act, and the National Housing Development Act.
According to PCOO Secretary Martin Andanar, this year’s SONA has Mindanao as its theme, and will ditch the mistake of having movie directors directing the TV and video coverage, with RTVM’s Danny Abad taking on the job instead.
A modest 300 to 400 guests will be accommodated at the venue, with the usual pomp and pageantry among the elite. Like all other SONAs in the past, the occasion is also an opportunity for critics of the administration to say their piece, whether in media or outside the halls of the Batasan thru protest rallies and marches.
This year, an early comment from opposition leader Vice President Leni Robredo stood out: “People will not be content to listen to achievements… Since we are in the middle of a pandemic, it’s important to hear an honest assessment from the President.” We agree.
