What is SONA? How and why it is very important to a nation?

The State of the Nation

Address (abbreviated SONA; Filipino: Talumpatì sa Kalagayan ng Bansâ) is an annual address
by the President of the Philippines to a joint session of the Congress of the Philippines. The
SONA, which is often broadcast, serves as a means to inform the nation about its present
economic, political, and social condition. It is also a vehicle for the President to summarise the
accomplishments and plans of his/her programme of government both for a particular year and
until the end of their term of office. In it, the Chief Executive reports on the state of the country,
unveils the government’s agenda for the coming year, and may also propose to Congress certain
legislative measures. The SONA is a constitutional obligation, required by Article VII, Section
23 of the 1987 Constitution:

“[T]he President shall address the Congress at the opening of its regular session.”

Moreover, Article VI, Section 15 prescribes that the Congress “shall convene once every year on
the fourth Monday of July for its regular session.” The President of the Philippines appears
before Congress upon its invitation, for which purpose a joint session is held in the Session Hall
of the House of Representatives. Congress issues tickets, and all preparations are undertaken
with Congress as the official host.
On Monday morning, both the House of Representatives and the Senate hold their
respective sessions in their respective chambers and elect their officials. Thereafter, a concurrent
resolution is filed stating that both chambers are ready to hear the address of the President.
Sessions of both Houses are suspended. In the afternoon, the President is met at Batasang
Pambansa, either planeside or carside, by the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the
Philippines and the Sergeants-at-Arms of both Houses of Congress. The Chief of Staff of the
Armed Forces will then escort the President past the Honor Guard. At this point, the military
escort of the President is relieved of duty and replaced by the Sergeant-at-Arms of the House of
Representatives, symbolizing the independence of the Legislature. The President is then escorted
to the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office (PLLO), which serves as the chief executive’s
office in the House Representatives. The leaders of both chambers traditionally pay a courtesy
call on the President in the PLLO. A Welcoming Committee, appointed by and among peers in
both Chambers of Congress, accompany the President into the Session Hall. Upon his entry to
the Session Hall, the Speaker of the House announces the arrival of the President, who takes his
position between the Senate President and the Speaker of the House. The Joint Session of
Congress is thereafter called to order, followed by the singing of the national anthem and the
invocation. After which, the President descends to the rostrum to deliver the SONA. After the
message of the President, the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate close the
Joint Session of Congress for their respective Chambers.

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte delivers his 4th State of the Nation Address on Monday
significant accomplishments made by his administration aim at Reducing Poverty, Fighting Graft
and Corruption and improving Peace and Security in the entire country. Among the
accomplishments he mentioned include the signing of the Ease of Doing Business and efficient
Government Service Delivery Act, a legislation that aims to improve service delivery and fight
corruption. The President wanted top government agencies such as Transportation Office (LTO),
Social Security System (SSS), Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), Land Registration Authority
(LRA), and Home Development Mutual Fund (PAG-IBIG), to drastically improve their services.
The administration’s Build, Build, Build Program has already gained momentum through the
efforts of the economic team led by Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III. Public Works and
Highways Secretary Mark Villar and Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade have also made
major improvements in the country’s infrastructure. The government has also recently paved the
way for the entry of the third telecommunications provider that is expected to break the duopoly
of the existing telecommunications companies in the Philippines. To attain national peace and
reconciliation, the President said that after almost two decades of peace negotiation, the
Bangsamoro Organic Law was finally passed and ratified. And to address communist
insurgency, the President said that he has taken the helm of the National Task Force to End Local
Communist Armed Conflict and assigned a Cabinet member to each region to harmonize
government efforts in attaining national development and security. The administration also made
major strides in the education sector, President Duterte said, commending the efforts by
Education Secretary Leonor Briones and the Department of Education (DepEd).This year, more
Filipino learners have received basic education with over 27 million enrollees from Kindergarten
to Senior High School. Out-of-school youth and adult learners were able to access non-formal
education through the Alternative Learning System. To prop up the economy, he reported that
almost 86,000 micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) have received over P3 billion
worth of loans since 2017, thanks to the efforts of the Department of Trade and Industry
(DTI).The government was also able to pursue tax reforms to fund poverty reduction programs,
the President said, asking Congress to immediately pass Package 2 of the Comprehensive Tax
Reform Program, or the TRABAHO Bill, which shall gradually lower corporate income tax, and
rationalize and improve fiscal incentives. Government-owned and controlled corporations
(GOCCs), infamous for high salaries and bonuses paid for their executives and employees, have
started to shape up, he said. The Bureau of Customs (BOC), known as a corruption-ridden
agency, managed to collect P585 billion in 2018, according to the President. The President also
raised the worsening traffic situation in Metro Manila. With estimated economic losses of P3.5
billion a day due to traffic congestion, the President asked the Metropolitan Manila Development
Authority (MMDA) and all concerned local officials in the National Capital Region to undertake
immediate action to ensure the speedy and smooth flow of vehicular traffic. He wanted the
government to reclaim all public roads that are being used privately.

Therefore, I conclude that SONA is very important and the people should not miss on it
because this is the moment that the citizen of the country may heard the accomplishments of a
certain administration and by being aware of what government is doing, everyone can become
involved and also take part in government’s plan to build a better life for all. And it is more than
a litany of a current leaderships’s accomplishments whether real or imagined. The SONA is
supposed to be platform for the President to inform the Congress about the state of the country
and for the nation’s leader to recommend to the legislature measures which he deems important.

President Rodrigo Duterte has successfully delivers his 4th State of the Nation to the
public eye which this is the important day to be witness by his fellow countrymen in his 3 years
of accomplishments since he took the office of the presidency in year 2016. His campaign
slogan, CHANGE IS COMING was totally uplift us from different adversity which experienced
by some Filipinos in this country. But before that, he wage war against crime and corruption
including illegal drugs which suffers and destroys the image of the Filipinos and mostly the
teenagers. Our beloved motherland, the Philippines collapse due to this different adversity. Until
now, he urges us, the Filipinos to join him to continue his fight against this different adversity.
Unity is the only weapon to make our country a better place to live and to have a brighter future
not only for us but also for our coming future generation.

According to City Mayor of Manila Isko Moreno Domagoso, “You want Change, Start
Disciplining Yourselves”. This is a great challenge for us Filipinos that we must start to change
ourselves before anything else and I am confident that we will witness the real change in our
country. This is our chance to us Filipinos and we should not miss it.

References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_of_the_Nation_Address_(Philippines)

"Historical Background of the State of the Nation Address". Official Gazette.

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2019/07/23/.../32-things-duterte-said-his-4th-sona

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2019/07/23/.../32-things-duterte-said-his-4th-sona

https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2019/07/22/.../full-text-dutertes-2019-sona-speech