ILOILO City — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA) yesterday drew sharply divided reactions in Iloilo, earning high marks for recognizing local governments and confronting the flood-control controversy but criticism for allegedly failing to offer concrete solutions to poverty, unemployment, rising fuel prices and corruption.
Iloilo 4th District’s Cong. Ferjenel Biron rated the President’s address nine out of 10.
“Excellent message,” Biron said.
He explained that he withheld a perfect score because no presidential address could comprehensively tackle every problem.
“No SONA is complete to address all the problems of the government,” Biron said.
For the lawmaker, one of the speech’s strongest points was Marcos’ declaration that he was the President of all Filipinos — not merely of his family, relatives or political allies – in addressing the flood control mess.
Biron also welcomed the President’s statement that former House Speaker Martin Romualdez would soon face charges, and supported the proposed amendment of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act to prevent electricity system losses from being passed on to consumers.
Biron said it was also appropriate for Marcos not to mention the continuing impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte-Carpio.
Iloilo City’s Mayor Raisa Treñas, meanwhile, welcomed Marcos’ recognition of the crucial role of local government units (LGUs) in responding to crises and delivering frontline services.
“We are grateful to President Bongbong Marcos because his SONA showed his strong trust and confidence in local government units. It recognizes the important role of LGUs in addressing crises and delivering services that are directly felt by the people,” Treñas said.
The mayor also welcomed the inclusion of Iloilo City among the pilot beneficiaries of Oplan Kontra Baha through the Department of Labor and Employment’s Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers program.
She said the selection demonstrated the national government’s continuing confidence in Iloilo City, which has repeatedly served as a pilot area for government initiatives.
“Flooding remains one of our continuing concerns, and we are ready to support the national government’s Oplan Kontra Baha and other programs to strengthen flood control and better protect our residents. As one of the cities consistently chosen for pilot programs, Iloilo City remains committed to being an active and reliable partner of the national government,” Treñas added.
However, Iloilo City’s Councilor Nene Dela Llana said that while she appreciated Iloilo’s inclusion in the flood-mitigation program, the President’s speech failed to sufficiently address the country’s most pressing economic and governance problems.
“I was happy that the President mentioned Iloilo as one of the pilot areas for Oplan Kontra Baha. But overall, I found the SONA lacking. It did not address what concrete solutions the administration will provide for poverty, unemployment, rising fuel prices, and corruption. We want to hear solutions, not promises,” Dela Llana said.
Former Kabataan party-list representative Raoul Manuel gave the SONA a failing grade, arguing that the measures presented by Marcos did not address the root causes of the country’s problems.
“Failure gihapon ang aton nga pag-asses kay tungod nga indi masabat sang mga tikang nga ginpang-present sa iya nga SONA ang mga roots sang mga problema sa aton nga pungsod,” Manuel said.
Manuel cited the expansion of PhilHealth benefit packages, saying healthcare continued to be treated as a privatized service while public hospitals remained neglected and patients still died because they could not secure hospital rooms.
He also questioned the government’s proposal to provide only five scholarship slots in every barangay, saying this would be inadequate given the number of out-of-school youths who could neither study nor immediately find employment.
“Sa education enough na bala nga may lima lang ka scholars sa kada barangay nga kadamo sang aton out-of-school youths nga indi maka-eswkela kag indi man dayun makaobra? It shows nga palpak gid, indi buot silingon nga may inobrahan, makuntento na kita,” Manuel added./PN
