‘Be honest,’ Leni prods Rody
Where is the Philippines now five years into President Rodrigo Duterte’s term?
The President will seek to answer such a question and more during his final State of the Nation Address
(SoNA) next week at the Batasang Pambansa, Malacañang said Wednesday.
“He will answer the question, ‘What and where we are now?’ and (he) is looking forward to his final year as President,” Mr. Duterte’s spokesperson Secretary Harry Roque told reporters in a televised briefing.
Roque said President Duterte will cite the gains of his administration in terms of its social programs, infrastructure, peace and security and foreign policy, among other areas of governance.
Vice President Leni Robredo and Senate President Vicente Sotto III, in separate interviews, expressed hopes that Duterte’s final SoNA will be an “honest” assessment of the country’s situation in terms of pandemic response.
Robredo said the President’s speech should be upfront on the government’s handling of the pandemic to help appease a nation still grappling with the health crisis.
“It would help if the President would be very honest (on) where we are as far as Covid-19 response is concerned. Because the problem, the anxiety, comes from not knowing where we are or what we hope to expect in the coming months,” she said in an interview.
Robredo, who also serves as the opposition’s de facto leader, said she did not receive an invitation to be physically present at the Batasang Pambansa on 26 July, but said she will attend virtually.
Duterte’s 2020 SoNA was lacking in comprehensive details of the country’s much-awaited pandemic recovery program, according to Robredo.
The President held his first SoNA rehearsal Wednesday night.
While Mr. Duterte’s speech has been finalized by Palace writers, the President may modify it as he rehearses, Roque said.
The President is scheduled to deliver his last SoNA Monday before a limited number of guests, reminiscent of last year’s event sans fanfare due to Covid-19.
It will be far from the usual jampacked event, typically attended by hundreds of Cabinet officials, members of the first family, senators, congressmen, and their spouses. Still, most Cabinet members are expected to attend, he added.
“The only difference between last year’s and this year’s SoNA is the conduct of a rapid test which would be administered this year at the House of Representatives,” Roque said.
Sotto, meanwhile, said the President should also lay down his roadmap for pandemic recovery which could guide the Philippines’ next president, as well as his “clear” stance on issues surrounding the West Philippine Sea.
He added that he expects to hear legislative priorities other than what Congress already has on the table, particularly “measures that will improve the lives of our countrymen and definitely the economy.”
“Well, I expect and hope that there will be a Covid-19 roadmap that the President will lay out so the next administration will be able to follow through,” Sotto told CNN Philippines’ “The Source.”
The lawmaker, who is gunning for the vice presidency in the May 2022 elections, also called on Duterte to report on the progress of his flagship program war on drugs.
The President — whose 2016 campaign promise focused on eradicating illegal drugs, corruption, and criminality — will step down on 30 June 2022.