MINDANAO TODAY
The M
THE FINAL 2021
State of the nation Address RRR
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte nitor
Volume I Number 60 | www.mindanaotoday.com | Mon-Tue, July 26-27, 2021 | 16 pages | P 15.00
I
Expectations remain high during Duterte’s last SONA today
N his last State of the Nation Address (SONA) today, July 26, both detractors and supporters of Pres. Rodrigo Duterte are eager to listen to what the chief executive has to say. Just a few months until he steps down from his office at Malacañang, the Filipino people want to hear what are Duterte’s priorities and how he can accomplish them in the remaining months of his presidency. Duterte’s term will end on June 30, 2022. Whether or not Duterte will run as vice president in the 2022 local and national elections will be a discussion reserved for the coming
months, as at present, most of the country’s millions of voters will be interested in the current affairs, that is, as they count the days leading to the former mayor from Davao City’s exit from the highest office in the country. Filipinos, both ordinary and prominent, will be keeping their ears close to their radio or TV sets or glued to their electronic devices to listen and digest the points and issues that Duterte will raise during the SONA. Among the topics that the Filipino people want to hear at the moment is the ongoing “word war” between Duterte and Sen. Manny Pacquiao.
MANILA – The government has gone far under the leadership of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte in providing more opportunities for economic growth and overcoming challenges, Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar said. In a statement, Secretary Andanar outlined the significant accomplishments of the Duterte Administration which opened doors, broken barriers, and overcame problems in a
bid to uplift the quality of life of Filipinos. These include the promotion of the 25-year long-term Ambisyon Natin 2040, modernization of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and other policies that promoted the pillars of President Duterte’s leadership on anti-criminality, anti-narcotics, anti-insurgency. Likewise, the notable rise of massive infrastructure projects ANDANAR p2...
Before he was removed as the national president of the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan (PDPLaban), Pacquio got the ire of Duterte for questioning the present administration on why graft and corruption is still rampant in the country despite the president’s previous pronouncements that he will remove from public service government officials who are suspected to have committed any wrongdoing while in office, even with just a “whiff of corruption.” The citizens of this country also want to know from their commander-in-chief what
course of action Duterte is going to take with regards to the West Philippine Sea issue as in the past he has been known to assert the country’s rights to the contested waters one moment and disregarding the Permanent Court of Arbitration’s ruling that the contested maritime territory as its exclusive economic zone belongs to the Philippines the next. But perhaps the most pressing issue that Duterte must discuss in his SONA, and even after that, is the national government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Filipino taxpayers are
very interested to know if there are some updates on the country’s Covid-19 response, foremost of which, is if there are more vaccines coming that are enough to inoculate the majority of the population and will hopefully and eventually achieve the “immunity herd.” People also want to hear from the President if there are financial assistance and other interventions coming for those sectors hard hit by the health crisis – low-income workers, vendors, tricycle drivers, and just about everyone are finding it difficult to survive in the pandemic – those living on the fringes of society. With only a few months left in the Duterte administration, there are still individuals who wish that the President fully make good on his campaign promises – particularly on eliminating corruption in government and the campaign on illegal drugs which he assured, even before he assumed office, that will no longer be a problem. (Jigger Jerusalem)