EXPECT PRESIDENT Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. to tackle all the issues Filipinos want to hear in his first State of the Nation Address (SONA), presidential son and Ilocos 1st District Rep. Ferdinand Alexander "Sandro" Marcos said Monday.
This, as Sandro expressed confidence that Filipinos will be "very happy" to listen to his father's SONA.
"I think people will be very happy with what he has to say," he said in a chance interview at Batasan Pambansa in Quezon City, when quizzed about the specific topics that will be discussed in the Chief Executive's speech. "I don’t want to give everything away. But I think everything that we are expecting to hear, you will hear."
Marcos was the one who drafted his first SONA, Executive Secretary Victor Rodriguez earlier said.
Sandro said he was with his father when the latter was writing and rehearsing the speech.
The Chief Executive's speech will be "technical," his son added.
"I haven’t seen all of it. I’ve seen part of him rehearsing it. It’s going to be on the technical side. but that’s what I think people are looking for, and that’s what I think will signal to our foreign investors, our local investors and of course our legislators who will be listening in as to what the direction is going to be of this administration in the next six years," Sandro said.
Asked if the President's speech will also be the same as the previous SONAs of his father and namesake, former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr., Sandro said: "Well, I heard the longest SONA was 29,000 words, I don’t think he’s going to get at that. I was baffled when I heard that number, 29,000 is no joke. But, I think in terms of style of delivery, I think we will see some similarities there. Let’s wait and see."
Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) Commandant, Admiral Artemio Abu, meanwhile, said he hopes to hear an assurance of backup for the PCG to maintain the country's sovereignty.
"I don't like to preempt or procrastinate. But of course, we are eagerly wanting to hear that the Coast Guard will be supported," he said.
Abu pointed out that the continued support from the administration would help them ensure the protection and integrity of the West Philippine Sea.
As of the writing, strict security protocols were being implemented hours before the first SONA.
Security personnel and K9 patrol units were still doing the rounds.
Marcos wants the SONA rites to be simple, House Secretary General Mark Llandro Mendoza earlier said.
The SONA is a constitutional obligation, required by Article 7, Section 23 of the 1987 Constitution, which states that, "[T]he President shall address the Congress at the opening of its regular session.
It is an annual event which gives the President the opportunity to report on the state of the country, unveil the government's economic agenda for the year, and ask Congress to pass priority legislative measures.
Rodriguez, in an interview on Friday, said Marcos' SONA contains his administration's economic agenda, the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic response efforts, and initiatives to ensure food security in the country. (Ruth Abbey Gita-Carlos)
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