The mechanics of a SONA
Ignacio R. BunyeQuite often, the office of the Press Secretary is asked by reporters for advanced copies of important speeches of the President. And this early, there are already numerous requests for the State of the Nation Address (SONA).
Since the speech is usually delivered close to deadline time, we can appreciate why reporters intending to cover the SONA on July 23 would want to have an advance copy in hand and just check it against delivery. As in the past, we are constrained to politely beg off for the simple reason that the speech is still very much in progress. The President herself writes and rewrites it on her laptop computer and the final version is completed only a few minutes before she boards the presidential vehicle on her way to Congress.
The process starts a full month ahead of the SONA when the members of the Cabinet are requested to submit their agency inputs thru the Ric Saludo, secretary to the Cabinet, who consolidates the submissions. The information is then uploaded to the laptop of the President, who regularly devotes time every day (Appointments Undersecretary Malou Frostrom calls it the Sona Hour) crafting her message to the nation.
Like an architect talking to a client, the President periodically asks a Cabinet member or two to view the work in progress. Then close to Sona time, the President makes a presentation to the full Cabinet. As in the past, Cabinet members would ‘lobby’ to include a phrase or a sentence in the draft and later take pride in their authorship when the proposal is included in the final version.
So, how is going so far?
I have not seen the latest revision (probably revision number 8 by now) but I believe that in her SONA, the President will talk about her vision of the Philippines as First World in 20 years (when we will have dramatically reduced poverty, created a robust middle class and have all the hallmarks of a modern society in strong, stable institutions) and what she would like to do in the next three years to contribute to that vision.
A central theme would be sustaining a strong economy and investing in human capital and physical infrastructure. In last year’s SONA, President Arroyo unveiled the Super Regions infrastructure framework. She is expected to give an update on what we have achieved so far and what are the doables this year towards making our country more competitive and therefore more attractive to investors. She is expected to cover reforms and investments in education and social services. And finally, she is expected to cover the subject of waging peace in Mindanao, which should cover not just the fight against terror but also the development initiatives to realize the full potential of Mindanao.
In sum, the President is expected to show to the nation a path of economic growth, political stability and social justice.
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July 15 marks the effectivity of the landmark Human Security Act. No implementing rules and regulations (IRR) are required for the law to take effect but there are publication requirements in both national and regional media and in the national language and major dialects, all of which have already been complied with.
This new law enhances the safety and domestic security of our country by giving us more legal power to prosecute those who commit any acts of terror on our people.
At the time of the Davao Airport bombing incident, we still had no Human Security Act. The police nabbed a suspect whom they charged with illegal possession of firearms. The suspect eventually bailed himself out, only to commit another act of terrorism by perpetuating the North Cotabato bombing.
The law’s message is clear: If you are armed and kill civilians, you will be prosecuted. If you are a communist terrorist, religious terrorist or even a rogue element of our own police or military, you will be stopped. The law empowers enforcers to crush the terrorist movement in the country and to transform our nation’s response to political violence, while at the same time ensuring that civil rights are protected.
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