SONA to begin with Mindanao President Arroyo’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) will put emphasis
on Mindanao, in a speech described by Malacañang officials as a report card of her administration’s
accomplishments in the past 12 months. Palace officials, who were among the Cabinet members present during Mrs. Arroyo’s rehearsals of her SONA, said her speech today would start with Mindanao and would be “rich with visuals and slide shows” of the
government’s accomplishments. “Developing the provinces, particularly in Mindanao, is her priority,” a Palace official said, adding that the Chief Executive would announce a 30 percent increase in the budget allocation for the region as well as the transfer of the offices of some departments there. For her legislative agenda, Mrs. Arroyo is expected to push for the immediate passage of measures to ensure clean and orderly elections and the Cheap Medicines Bill. She will also discuss government efforts to improve peace and order and combat terrorism following the implementation of the Human Security Act last week. The President will also tackle the issue of reported human rights violations and extrajudicial killings and reiterate that the government does not condone them. “There will be no justification for the killings. This will be the President’s message,” another Palace official said. “This year’s SONA, upon specific direction of the President, will be less rhetorical and low on platitudes, to depart from the usual ‘timeless speeches.’ Instead, SONA 2007 will focus on actual accomplishments. After all, there is so much to talk about on the major priority projects,” Presidential Management Staff chief Secretary Cerge Remonde said. Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said it would be almost impossible for the Palace to give out advance copies of the SONA since Mrs. Arroyo literally makes last minute changes on her way to Batasan Pambansa complex where is to make her speech. Remonde said the SONA is essentially a report card of the Arroyo administration’s accomplishments in the last 12 months. “The meat and the substance of it are all the projects that we have initiated and developed from July 2006. And these projects have been subject to ongoing media coverage,” Remonde said. He noted that July last year, Mrs. Arroyo announced 87 major infrastructure projects, consisting mostly of roads, bridges, ports and airports, irrigation, and farm-to-market roads. He said the Palace recently announced completion of four of the 87 major projects. “More will be completed before SONA 2008 and almost all will be done by 2010.” A document released over the weekend by Secretary to the Cabinet Ricardo Saludo said the SONA will include updates on major projects in the five “super regions”: North Luzon Agribusiness Quadrangle, Central Philippines as the country’s Tourism Center; the Urban Beltway and Mindanao as the country’s Agribusiness Center in the South, and the IT Corridor.