State of the Nation Address 2009

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SONA Summary

• Arroyo said she has been invited by President Obama to the White House this week, showing …
• She said in 2001, Asia was surging but country was on brink of bankruptcy but that in 2008 up the first quarter of 2009, the Philippine economy was one of few that did not shrink.
• Since then, according to Arroyo, the economy has posted uninterrupted growth for 33 quarters.
• Arroyo said economy is strong and it can withstand global shocks and that she has put up moder infrastructure and completed unfinished ones.
• Arroyo mentioned working on measures to anticipate natural calamities and give early warning.
• The President mentioned Leah de la Cruz, a rebel returnee, who is now helping former rebels in livelihood training.
• The question is not who will win but that if there is need Filipinos to battle each other, Arroyo said, adding she wishes for peace in Mindanao more than any other.Arroyo said crimes should be fought using crime fighters and the other pillars of the justice system and urged Congress to fund the hiring of more policemen.
• Arroyo said critics oppose Cha-Cha now that they feel they could not benefit from it.
• Arroyo also said her term does not end until next year and that she will continue to fight for Filipino until that time.
• President Arroyo said she has prepared well for a man-made calamity that is now upon the country.
• She added that Manny Pacquiao epitomizes the quality of hard work and godliness in the Filipino people. She congratulated Manny for his tireless training and iron discipline.
• A national problem, though, can’t be knocked out with single punch, according to Arroyo.
• Arroyo said a President must be on the job 24/7 and that she has not flinched nor faltered in doing her tasks.
• The President also said her emergency proclamations are not signs of dictatorship but of determination.
• The President said she will defend democracy and will sustain it with wise policies so it would translate to full life for all.
• Arroyo said those who accuse her of misgovernance leave her their problems to solve, and those who accuse her of corruption have “have lifestyles and spending habits that make them walking proofs of that crime.”
• She also said people in glass houses should not cast stones and that “those who should be in jail should not threaten it, especially if they have been there.”
• She also said people in glass houses should not cast stones and that “those who should be in jail should not threaten it, especially if they have been there.”
• She also said people in glass houses should not cast stones and that “those who should be in jail should not threaten it, especially if they have been there.”
• Arroyo said the Philippines is weathering well the storm raging around the world.
• Arroyo urged everyone to come, work, and walk together.

From: Sunstar