Lawmakers want clear post-COVID plan in Duterte's final SONA

Senators and a House Deputy Speaker urged President Rodrigo Duterte to include specific details on the Philippines' post-COVID-19 recovery plan in his final State of the Nation Address (SONA).

They emphasized the need for a clear roadmap to address the Delta variant, ensure sufficient vaccine rollout, and revive the economy while tackling unemployment.

Rodriguez noted that Duterte's final SONA, which focused on achievements, lacked a long-term vision for overcoming the pandemic and surviving future variants, as well as definite plans for economic revival and unemployment.

Duterte's last SONA was his longest, lasting 2 hours and 46 minutes, but contained little on lifting the economy from the pandemic.

He spent only about 22 minutes discussing the pandemic and related issues, with security, military, police programs, and the drug war taking up a larger portion of the speech.

A Pulse Asia survey released on the day of the SONA indicated that Filipinos were more interested in hearing about the economy, which continues to suffer from the pandemic.