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Official Publication of the Philippine Information Agency Bicol Regional Office, in cooperation with the RIAC-REDIRAS - RDC Bicol



Friday, July 26, 2013

Bicolano solon, executives affirm 4th Pnoy’s SONA

By Joseph John J. Perez

LEGAZPI CITY, July 26 (PIA) -- The fourth State of the Nation Adress (SONA) of President Benigno Aquino III is his best so far. This is the reaction of Bicolano Senator Francis Joseph “Chiz” Escudero who ran under the President’s Team Pnoy in the recent midterm election and placed fourth in the final tally of winning senators.

“Compared with the previous (SONAs), this is the best, detailed and clear SONA of President Aquino,” Escudero said.

The president was able to lay down the things he wanted to realize and accomplished and the things he wants to do in the next three years, Escudero added.

Escudero however wished that the President should have included in his latest SONA the controversial Freedom of Information Bill. “However the President previously made his position clear already that he is not yet convinced with the existing version and he is yet to see the version that he wants to be done,” Escudero said.

Escudero also supported Pnoy’s top priorities in the final three years of his term which are sustainable economic growth and inclusive growth. “Make sustainable the economic growth and development and more than that, make it inclusive and felt by the poor and marginalized sectors and not only for the rich,” Escudero added.

Meanwhile Bicol’s top executives also express approval on the general content of the SONA.

Department of Tourism (DOT) Regional Director Maria Ong-Ravanilla was glad on the inclusion of the Bicol International Airport as one of PNoy’s pipelined projects.

It means it will be completed in 2016 as it will bring more tourists to Bicol,” Ravanilla said.

Bicol contributed 17% or 700,000 of the 4.2 million foreign tourists in 2012, Ravanilla said.

“We expect to contribute one million foreign tourists or at least 10% of the expected foreign tourists based on the new target,” Ravanilla said. Around P10M revenue is expected to be gained by Bicol on tourism industry, Ravanilla said.

Land Transportation Office (LTO) Bicol assistant regional director Vincent Nato described PNoy’s latest SONA like the famous Filipino dish adobo with complete ingredients.

“In local lingo we say "Kumpletos recados" like an adobo that is ready to be served,” Nato said.

"With PNoy’s advocacy for "tuwid na daan" the government was able to save in its budget that can be realigned to other priority projects. The government is more decisive now for its advocacy,” Nato added.

Maria Libertad Mella-Dometita, project manager of the European Union-supported Good Governance project of the Integrated Rural Development Foundation of the Philippines (IRDF) assessed the SONA as containing good information and "entertainment value".

“It made good use of multi-media, good to report on exporting rice and reminded us on reproductive health,” Dometita said. However, the 4Ps testimony is like a case study that is not reflective of its majority results, and the "pogi points" for the military and police is "over", Dometita said. "The SONA did not touch core agrarian issues,” she added.

Meanwhile, regional director Maria Celestina Manlangit-Tam of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Bicol explained that the Hacienda Luisita is considered as a “barometer” of accomplishment for other regions that is why it was highlighted in the SONA.

“If our counterparts in Region 3 can do it in Hacienda Luisita, we are also expected to do the same in our respective regions (in distributing highly contentious lands),” Tam said.

Tam also approves the inclusion of notable government personnel who made exemplary performance in their jobs that gave hope and proves that the "tuwid na daan" is achievable. “Being a government employee, I feel proud that I am also part of the government’s achievements here in Bicol especially in serving the agrarian reform beneficiaries as part of our mandate,” Tam said. The President is telling the truth that there is indeed development that is trickling down to the countryside, Tam added. (MAL/JJJP/PIA5-Albay)

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