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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Duterte failed to present plan vs. pandemic --- UP analyst

Duterte failed to present plan vs. pandemic --- UP analyst

Published Jul 28, 2020 02:39 pm

President Duterte has failed to present a comprehensive plan and vision against the pandemic in his fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA), a political analyst from the University of the Philippines (UP) said.

President Rodrigo Roa Duterte delivers his 5th State of the Nation Address at the House of Representatives Complex in Quezon City on July 27, 2020.
(PRESIDENTIAL PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)

"There were measures mentioned by the President during his SONA but to me, it was not a plan. A plan is something that is bigger, a plan should have a vision of how to move this country forward with COVID-19," UP political science Professor Jean Franco said in a television interview on Monday.

According to Franco, she was expecting a "blueprint" of how each government agency and local government units would resolve the more pressing issues in the country today.

"How would they resolve or respond to the displacement of people, the unemployment problem, the OFWs that have been displaced, the health system. These are the things that I was looking for, not just a bunch of measures submitted by each agency," she said.

Franco also said that the President should also have a long term plan that would extend even after his term.

"You can only plan if there is leadership, otherwise there are measures mentioned but it is going to be a hodgepodge of measures," Franco said.

The university professor also shared that she was "turned off" when President Duterte called out Senator Franklin Drilon, adding that the political space is "not proper."

President Duterte opened and closed his speech with attacks against the senate minority leader for apparently defending the Lopez family. This was after the opposition senator said that political dynasties must be banned to truly dismantle oligarchy.

Drilon's statement came following the President's claim that he has dismantled the oligarchy in the Philippines without declaring martial law, days after the rejection of the a new license for broadcast giant ABS-CBN earlier this month.

"I guess it is something that should not be done because you're speaking before the nation. It is unfair to the Senator and the political space is not proper," Franco said.

When asked for the President's grade after his fifth SONA, Franco said that she would give him a "five" in UP grading system, which means a failing score.

Meanwhile, Franco lauded that the President started his speech on time and also noticed his "attempt to have empathy" in his penultimate SONA.

"I guess one thing that's new is that he attempted to have empathy when he said that 'I know what you're going through' but I think he was coached to do that. Also, the fact that he started on time and as much as possible he refrained from ad-libs," she said.

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