(NI BETH JULIAN)

NASA 60 hanggang 70 percent nang tapos ang speech ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte para sa ikaapat niyang State of the Nation Address (SONA) sa July 22.

Ayon kay Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar, inaasahan na itong darating na weekend ay matatapos na ang gagamiting talumpati ng Pangulo kung saan nakapaloob dito ang kanyang legacy at ang kanya pang magandang plano para sa nalalabing tatlong taon pa bilang Pangulo ng bansa.

“We’ve sent messages from the Presidential Management Staff (PMS), they’re asking us to vet some information at least from the Presidential Communications Operations Office. Some messages were also sent to other departments to vet. This is what they want the President to at least read. Once everything’s vetted, it is when the speech writing begins,” pahayag ni Andanar.

“The speech writing will be…60 to 70 percent complete by the end of this week or during the weekend. We should have at least a briefing with the President on the speech and with the director, Joyce Bernal,” dagdag pa ni Andanar.

“Sa speech ng Pangulo, bringing poverty right down from 21 to 14 percent, and making the economy upper middle class by the end of his term,” ayon pa kay Andanar.

“Second would be the infrastructure projects, ‘Build, Build, Build,’ we really have to have hard infrastructure projects at the end of the day. And thirdly, there’s the peace and order highlighting the National Task Force to End Local Communists Armed Conflict. Because you can never have progress without peace and order—I think dyan tututok ang Presidente sa mensahe na yan (the President will focus on that message),” dagdag pa ni Andanar.

Inihayag din ni Andanar na posible ring talakayin ang usapin sa West Philippine Sea.

“It’s possible. But, what’s really important is how the President will be able to, also send the message again to the entire nation about our independent foreign policy— being friends to all and enemies to none — and it’s really worked on our side so far. We’ve received good trading deals with China and we’ve received more economic packages from Japan,” paliwanag pa ni Andanar.

“Our economy looks great, and people and different investors from different countries are investing in the Philippines. And I think, I believe that it is a result of that independent foreign policy — we’re friends to all, enemies to none,” dagdag pa nito.

Kumpiyansa si Andanar na bilang abogado, alam ng Pangulo ang ginagawa niya pagdating sa bilateral relations ng Pilipinas sa China.

“It is essentially the preservation of the life of the Filipino people that is most important as his constitutional duty. Sinasabi niya parati: Handa na ba tayong makipag giyera sa China? Hindi tayo handang makipag giyera sa China dahil kapag nakipag giyera tayo sa China, wala pang limang oras, pulbos na tayong lahat, mga Pilipino. Are we ready to go to war with China? We are not ready to go to war with China, because when we go to war with China, in less than five hours, we are wiped out, us Filipinos…His constitutional mandate is to protect the Filipino, life of every Filipino and that’s it, and he’s coming from that argument.”