State of the Nation Address (Philippines)

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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo gestures as she stresses a point during her 2006 State of the Nation Address, with Senate President Manny Villar and House Speaker Jose De Venecia, Jr. in the background.

The State of the Nation Address (abbreviated SONA) is an annual event in the Republic of the Philippines, in which the President of the Philippines reports on the status of the nation, normally to the resumption of a joint session of the Congress (the House of Representatives and the Senate). This is a duty of the President as stated in Article VII, Section 23 of the 1987 Constitution:

The President shall address the Congress at the opening of its regular session. He may also appear before it at any other time.

The address is also an opportunity for opposition parties to protest against the government. In 2005, tens of thousands of people attended protest rallies during the State of the Nation Address of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, calling on her to resign.

1 History
2 Local versions
3 See also
4 References

[edit] History

President Ferdinand E. Marcos delivering a State of the Nation Address in the 1960's. The Congress was located at the old Legislative Building in Manila at the time.

The "State of the Nation" address was first mentioned in the 1935 Constitution, in Section 10 of Article VII, to wit,

The President shall from time to time give to the Congress information on the state of the Nation, and recommend to its consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.

2006 marked the 70th anniversary of the State of the Nation Address.^[1] The first one was delivered by President Manuel L. Quezon on June 16, 1936. All such addresses are published in The Official Gazette, an annual publication by the government, which is a collection of all promulgations, Supreme Court decisions, executive issuances, and laws, which have been passed for the year. It is always delivered on the fourth Monday of July.

[edit] Local versions

Local governments in the Philippines also give their own addresses at some point during the year. At the provincial level, this is called a "State of the Province" Address, or SOPA, given by the provincial governor, while at the city level, this is called a "State of the City" Address, or SOCA, given by the city mayor. These speeches are not mandated by law, but are given usually as a matter of practice or tradition.