ON MONDAY, President Rodrigo Duterte will deliver his first State of the Nation Address (Sona) as the 16th President of the Republic of the Philippines.
The Sona is an annual address by the President held in a joint session of the Congress of the Philippines. The Sona is mandated by the 1987 Constitution and the speech is delivered every fourth Monday of July at the Plenary Hall of the Batasang Pambansa Complex in Batasan Hills, Quezon City, Metro Manila.
The Sona serves to inform the nation of its present economic, political, and social conditions. The President usually summarizes the accomplishments and plans of his program of government both for a particular year and until the end of his term. Since Digong is not the prototype President, we really do not know what to expect. For sure, there will be no blaming as was the norm of the past president.
What is the protocol of former presidents attending the Sona? Are they invited but not compelled to attend?
Since “change” is the tagline of the new President, indeed there will be modifications in this year’s Sona. For starters, the traditional red carpet fashion show by members of Congress especially their spouses will be a thing of the past. While I did enjoy watching the legislators’ spouses besting each other in ostentatious gowns and ternos, the shift is more in sync with the country’s economic situation. With victims of Yolanda still living in tents, the display of flamboyance and grandioseness is quite “libagon.”
The invitation requests guests to wear business attire which should be barong for men and a knee-length Filipiniana for female. When you receive an invitation and it has a dress code, protocol is: you abide by the request especially when it is specified. Don’t stick out like a sore thumb. There is elegance in simplicity.
Food likewise will not be lavish. Since this is merienda, there will be no cocktails or gourmet finger foods. For sure there will be eyebrows arched to the max to see banana cues and kesong puti, but the President dictates to be frugal and so be it!
There are 3,000 guests invited to the Sona. This will be a conglomeration of not only public officials, but also diplomats, dignitaries and personalities of different positions. With such a varied attendance, certain salutations are afforded their office. I do not know if there is any royalty coming, but to the King and Queen, you address him/her as Your Majesty. To princes and princesses, it is Your Royal Highness. To Cardinal Tagle if he comes, it is Your Eminence while to the Archbishop, it is Your Grace.
There are four positions that share the same title: the President, the Prime Minister, an Ambassador, and a Bishop. They are all addressed as Your Excellency. All former Presidents, Senate President, Speaker of the House, members of the Cabinet, all members of Congress are titled as Honorable. However, since Digong just made an announcement that he does not want to called Your Excellency, then it is best to just call him by what he desires, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte.
The Sona is an opportunity to hobnob with the biggies so be sure you have your calling card in place. In giving or receiving a calling card, do it with both hands. That is now the internationally accepted protocol. When you receive it, read it as a sign of acknowledgement.
Not yet a month in office, we see drastic changes rolling. For a glimpse of the President for the next six years, here are some information of the man.
Duterte was born on March 28, 1945 in Maasin, Southern Leyte to Vicente Duterte and Soledad Roa who were both civil servants.
Duterte traces his roots to the Visayas. He spent his early years in Danao, Cebu, the hometown of his father. But his lineage has also direct ties from Mindanao as his mother hails from Cabadbaran, Agusan del Norte while his paternal grandmother was a Maranao.
In 1949, when Duterte was four years old, his family resettled in the then-undivided Davao where his father Vicente became governor.
Duterte graduated in 1968 with a degree in Political Science at the Lyceum of the Philippines University and obtained a law degree from San Beda College of Law in 1972. He passed the bar exam that same year. He served as Davao City Prosecutor from 1977 until 1986, when he was appointed as OIC-vice mayor.
He won the mayoralty post in 1988. Duterte has not lost an election, and is among the longest-serving mayors in the Philippines and has been mayor of Davao City for seven terms, totaling more than 22 years. He has also served as vice mayor and as congressman of the city’s first congressional district.
On May 9, 2016, Duterte won a landslide victory as the Philippines’ 16th President.