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Joke of the Nation Address? Palace says earlier forums already discussed COVID-19 plans

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ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/news/07/27/20210726-duterte-sona-mnib23.jpg?ext=.jpg"/><figcaption>President Rodrigo Duterte gives his last State of the Nation Address at the House of Representatives on July 26, 2021. <em>Presidential Photo</em></figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA — Earlier forums have discussed government plans on how to rescue the Philippine economy from the COVID-19 crisis, Malacañang said on Tuesday, as it fended off criticism against President Rodrigo Duterte&#x27;s final State of the Nation Address. </p><p>Bayan Secretary General Renato Reyes said Duterte&#x27;s SONA started and ended on Monday with comments on his drug war, and took 2 hours before tackling the coronavirus pandemic, supposedly without presenting a clear plan for recovery. </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/27/21/sona-2021-duterte-delta-variant-covid19">&#x27;Pray for salvation,&#x27; Duterte says in final SONA as threat of Delta variant looms over PH</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/26/21/2021-sona-duterte-china-covid-vaccines">‘Utang na loob’: Duterte thanks China for donating COVID-19 vaccines in last SONA</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/26/21/duterte-sona-2021-summary">Duterte says final SONA is ‘not my swan song’; to keep batting for pandemic recovery</a></li></ul><p>&quot;Wala naman talagang pumupuri sa SONA ‘pag ikaw ay nasa hanay ng oposisyon. Siyempre, wala kang gagawin kundi ookrayin ang sinabi ng Presidente dahil oposisyon ka. Inaasahan na po natin &#x27;yan,&quot; said Palace spokesman Harry Roque in response to Reyes&#x27; comment. </p><p>(No one praises the SONA if you are in the opposition. Of course, you&#x27;ll do nothing but criticize what the President said because you are in the opposition. We were expecting that.)</p><p>&quot;Pero ang katotohanan po ay unang-una, kakaiba po itong ating SONA kasi. Bago po mag-SONA ang Presidente, meron na pong pre-SONA forums,&quot; he said in a press briefing. <br/> <br/>(But the truth was, our SONA was different. Before the President delivered his SONA, there were already pre-SONA forums.)</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/26/21/joke-of-the-nation-address-opposition-slams-dutertes-final-ramblings">&#x27;Joke of the Nation Address&#x27;: Opposition slams Duterte&#x27;s final &#x27;ramblings&#x27;</a></li></ul><p>These include a forum by economic managers who discussed fiscal and monetary stimulus to boost the economy. Authorities also discussed the coronavirus vaccination drive, said the Palace official. </p><p>&quot;Nakikita naman po ng taong bayan kung anong ginagawa natin sa pandemya,&quot; Roque said.</p><p>(The public sees what we are doing with the pandemic.) </p><p>&quot;Alam na po natin ang ating tatahaking daan para makabangon sa pandemya. Importante po ang pagbabakuna nang tayo po ay makapagbalik sa normal,&quot; he added. <br/> <br/>(We know the path we will take to recover from the pandemic. The vaccination is important so that we can return to normal.) </p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/27/21/robredo-covid-19-priority-duterte-sona-2021">No other priority but COVID-19 pandemic, VP Robredo stresses in own report to nation</a></li></ul><p>The Philippines has administered some 17 million COVID-19 shots, Roque noted. </p><p>This however is still below the required doses to meet the government target of vaccinating 58 to 70 million people this year to safely reopen the economy. Last year&#x27;s economy suffered its worst post-war slump due to the COVID-19 crisis. </p><p>With more than 1.5 million coronavirus cases and more than 27,000 deaths, the Philippines has the second worst outbreak in Southeast Asia.</p><p>&quot;We had hoped the president would present a clear roadmap to economic recovery, and how the government is building up healthcare capacity to handle any surges and future pandemics,&quot; said Rizalina Mantaring, an officer at the Management Association of the Philippines.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1735523" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar"><div><em>Video courtesy of RTVM</em></div></div><p>Duterte during his SONA said the battle against narcotics was far from over, more than 5 years after he began the brutal war on drugs that has killed thousands and prompted an accusation of possible crimes against humanity.</p><p>&quot;We still have long way in our fight against the proliferation of drugs,&quot; Duterte said in his nearly 3-hour address, which many had expected would focus on the COVID-19 pandemic. </p><p>Last month, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) sought the go-ahead to launch a formal investigation into the drugs war killings, saying crimes against humanity could have been committed.</p><p>Duterte, who has dared the ICC to put him on trial, taunted the court again, saying he has never denied that he will kill people out to destroy the country.</p><p>&quot;I have never denied, and the ICC can record it: those who destroy my country, I will kill you. And those who destroy the young people of our country, I will kill you. I will really finish you, because I love my country.&quot;</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/07/26/21/duterte-sona-2021-drugs-corruption">Duterte on drug war: I didn&#x27;t know I was fighting my own govt</a></li></ul><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1734846" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><p>Human rights groups accuse Duterte of inciting deadly violence, and say police have murdered unarmed drug suspects and staged crime scenes on a massive scale. Police deny this and Duterte insists cops are under orders to kill only in self-defense.</p><p>&quot;Duterte has nothing to show for his promise years ago to eliminate illegal drugs — nothing to show but dead bodies killed by the police,&quot; said Carlos Conde, Philippines researcher for Human Rights Watch.</p><p>Duterte, who won the presidency in 2016 on a vow to fight corruption, crime and illegal drugs, remains highly popular despite the criticism of the killings and his pandemic response.</p><p>&quot;Walang masama doon sa sinabi ni Presidente [sa SONA] dahil iyan naman po ang kaniyang pangako sa taongbayan. Kinakailangan mag-report siya sa kaniyang pangako,&quot; said Roque. </p><p>(There is nothing wrong with what the President said during the SONA because that was his promise to the people. He needs to report on his promise.) </p><p>Most Filipinos had wanted Duterte to discuss jobs and livelihood during his SONA, according to a survey that Pulse Asia released on Monday. </p><p>A separate Social Weather Stations poll, meanwhile, found nearly half of Filipino families consider themselves poor. </p><p>The government has distributed some P660 billion in grants and loans to help Filipinos cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, Roque said. </p><p>&quot;Kinalulungkot po natin ‘yan. Pero asahan po natin na habang nagbubukas ang ekonomiya, mas kakaunti po ang mga Pilipino na nag-iiisip na sila ay mahirap,&quot; he said of the SWS survey on poverty. </p><p>(That saddens us. But let us expect that as the economy reopens, fewer Filipinos will think they are poor.) </p><div><strong>— With reports from Jamaine Punzalan, ABS-CBN News; Reuters </strong></div>

<p>Earlier forums have discussed government plans on how to rescue the Philippine economy from the COVID-19 crisis, Malacañang said on Tuesday, as it fended off criticism against President Rodrigo Duterte's final State of the Nation Address. </p>

Earlier forums have discussed government plans on how to rescue the Philippine economy from the COVID-19 crisis, Malacañang said on Tuesday, as it fended off criticism against President Rodrigo Duterte's final State of the Nation Address.