VP Duterte's absence in SONA 'politically incorrect' — Gadon
Presidential Adviser for Poverty Alleviation Larry Gadon on Thursday, July 11, hit Vice President Sara Duterte's absence in President Marcos’ upcoming State of the Nation Address (SONA) after designating herself as the "designated survivor."
Gadon, a disbarred lawyer, said Duterte's absence in Marcos' third SONA, the first since winning her post, is "politically incorrect" as she remains the Vice President despite resigning as the secretary for the Department of Education (DepEd) and the vice chairman of National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).
"There is after all a chance to make up and show some degree of statesmanship by attending the SONA," Gadon said.
A supporter of Marcos, Gadon said the President "has not uttered any negative comment against VP Sara despite the destabilization rallies initiated by her father."
In a media interview on Thursday, Duterte said she "will not attend the SONA," and instead appointed herself as a "designated survivor."
In the United States, a designated survivor is an official in the presidential line of succession who is kept distant from others to reduce the chance that everyone in the line will be unable to take over the presidency in a mass-casualty event.