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Monday, July 26, 2021

Duterte’s final SONA may last for ‘less than an hour’

PRESIDEMT RODRIGO  Duterte is expected to deliver his sixth and final State of the Nation Address for just less than an hour, Malacañang said on Monday.  

“Ngayon po mahigit kumulang isang oras na lang po (This year’s SONA will run for only less than an hour),” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in an interview with Teleradyo.

Duterte’s speech is shorter than his previous SONAs despite four revisions made during his rehearsals, Roque said.

Roque, however, raised the possibility that Duterte might still deliver off-the-cuff remarks.

“So he has undergone at least four revisions from the original version of the speech. Napaikli na po iyong speech (His speech is too short),” he said. “Pero pupuwede naman pong mag ad-lib din ang Presidente. Ang dati niyang ginagawa eh, nag-a-ad-lib din naman siya, kung ano ang nasa puso niya (However, the President could still make an ad-lib like what he’s doing before).”

Roque said Duterte’s final SONA would focus on the current administration’s accomplishments during his first five years in office, including the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic response efforts and the relentless fight against illegal drugs and corruption in government.

He refused to spill additional information so as not to preempt Duterte’s report to the nation.

Duterte’s fifth SONA lasted for 100 minutes, longer compared to his fourth SONA which ran for 93 minutes.

His longest SONA was his second, which lasted for 120 minutes.

His first and third SONAs lasted for 90 minutes and 48 minutes, respectively.

Article 7, Section 23 of the Constitution requires the President to “address the Congress at the opening of its regular session”.

The Philippine president delivers the SONA every year, usually held every last Monday of July, to report the state of the country, unveil the administration’s agenda, and ask Congress to pass priority measures.

The Package 3 and 4 of the Comprehensive Tax Reform Program, and the amendments to the Retail Trade Liberalization Act, the Foreign Investments Act, and the Public Service Act are among the government’s priority measures earlier mentioned by Duterte.

Malacañang is expecting Congress to pass Duterte’s remaining priority bills within the year. (Ruth Abbey Gita-Carlos)



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