Impressions on the SONA

Like the coin with two sides or faces - the head and the tail - politics has its pros and cons. The SONA of a president being politics-oriented, evokes opposite reactions. Pres. GMA's 6th SONA is no exception in terms of drawing both praises and flaks.

To GMA partisans top-heavy with LGU officials and other cloying allies, the SONA was a perfect 10 spiced by 167 "alleluias". Among the laudatory superlatives heaped on the SONA were: "Power point presentation", "road map to progress", "specific outline of programs", "the best SONA ever", "road map for economic future", "the most inspiring to Filipinos".

But as expected, the SONA critics are more in numbers, running a cross-section of the discontented sectors, and more passionate. Even FVR who teeters between a pro-GMA and anti-GMA, but lately leaning to GMA, dismisses the SONA "as inaugural speech" of promises, instead of accounting for the 10-point agenda in her 2005 SONA.

But the most caustic comments came from militant leftists, NGO radicals, minority solons, the politicized prelates, the academe, and the political pretenders. Their broadsides varied, like, the SONA as very rich in promises with no chance of fulfillment; a mere wish list; a tourism and economic highway with no funding; a childish roll-call of allies being anointed with flattery; her four mega/super regions are just lessons in geography with no legal basis; not reflective of the real state of the nation; recycled promises and nothing new.

Quite intriguing was the off-beat style, the jolly and jovial off-tempo élan of its context and its delivery. Her main speechmaker could be a showbiz scriptwriter with an ear for applause after almost every sentence, as GMA titillated her fans with levity. Like fiction writing, the SONA was an entertaining and amusing show, rather than for sober meditation as the occasion demands.

Imagine if such SONA were delivered, say, by US President Bush before Congress, or by President Putin of Russia before the Duma, or by Prime Minister Tony Blair before the British Parliament! Imagine also the revulsion from the press in these countries, and other media outlets! One couldn't conceive of such atrocious scenario in other climes outside the Philippines.

To some impish cynics, that SONA was an exercise of "yaga-yaga" of such nature unheard of before. While levity may find its slice in any formal speech, nonetheless, it should not be the prevailing tone and theme.

One wished that GMA's SONA should have also touched on these issues: For one, it's high time that GMA should bite the bullet vis-à-vis the adverse church reaction, by setting a no-nonsense national policy to stem the runaway overpopulation. For another, with worldwide serious concerns on the deleterious effects of global warming affecting all future mankind, GMA ought to have put in what the Philippines can contribute to the crusade against global warming. And, with the crude oil crisis that comes with geo-political tensions worldwide, energy austerity has to be set, starting with cutting by half the use of government vehicles, and resorting to al fresco in buildings by shutting off air conditioning, etc.

Lastly, going hand in hand with overpopulation, which spawns abject poverty, no reforms have been mentioned on the worsening quality of education.

Indeed, there are still a lot more national concerns that the SONA evaded addressing, as if by such ruse of evasion, the conflicting issues could be resolved, or the problems could be solved.

* * *

Thanks to Brod Nito Jabat for his kind words. We've always held that coming from Cebu's dean of opinion makers and the man with the best pun, a mere mention in his column is already a strike, a bat, a hit, and a run rolled into one. Thanks again!

* * *

Email: [email protected]