MANILA. Philippines (1st UPDATE) - President Benigno Aquino III will deliver a sober and realistic State of the Nation Address (SONA), one that will hew closely to his June 30 inaugural address, members of his communications team said on Monday.

"The executive has to be sober and realistic... He's always been very clear that if everyone realizes the problem, there is a lot of room for optimism in realizing that there are some things you can do quickly while there are some that take time," Manolo Quezon told Karen Davila and David Celdran in ANC's special coverage of the SONA.

He added Aquino will be more "inclusive" and "not technocratic" in his SONA. 

Quezon said Aquino currently enjoys high trust ratings, as reflected in the latest opinion polls of Social Weather Stations (SWS) and Pulse Asia, partly due to his candidness.

"He is able to achieve his mandate by not focusing on the tinsel and the decoration but lays things out matter of factly," he said.

Quezon also said the SONA will be clear about what the Aquino administration has inherited, and what its priorities will be.

"This is the situation we inherited, we can't plan if the problems are not laid out. From there, what should be done, especially with the priorities," he added.

Revisions on style

Presidential Management Staff (PMS) Chief Julia Abad and Ricky Carandang of Aquino's Communications Group left the President’s residence at Times St. in Quezon City shortly after lunch.
           
In an ambush interview, Carandang said the draft of Aquino's SONA is a product of 6 or 7 revisions.

“The final touch was done last night [Sunday],” Carandang told reporters.

Carandang said the last-minute revisions were not on the substantial aspect of the SONA but more on style.

“The President wanted to change a word or two,” Carandang said. “It will be in Tagalog para mas maintindihan ng mga tao. Kasi kung English, you have a limited audience."

Once the SONA is delivered by the President before the joint session of Congress, Carandang said they will post the copy of the SONA on the Official Gazette, and this will be available online.

Making the speech

According to Quezon, Aquino "doesn't like very long speeches." Proof of this is Aquino's June 30 inaugural address, which lasted for 22 minutes.

In contrast, Aquino's predecessor, now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, delivered speeches that ranged from 30 minutes to almost 1 hour.

"I think 20-35 minutes is a safe benchmark," Quezon said when asked about how long the President's SONA will take to read.

Aquino is also not the type to wait for speechwriters, shared Quezon.

"Most politicians will wait for a draft. With him, he immediately does his own outline and sets his own theme. It involves his form of speech writing. He doesn't wait around," he said.

Unlike his very eloquent late father, Quezon said the president is "fundamentally a writer" and was very hands-on in crafting his SONA.

"The way he is, very hands-on. Everyone has a problem with the president's speaking style but he is fundamentally a writer. He has cadence, and the style of language is probably the greatest legacy of his father [late Senator Benigno Aquino Jr]," Quezon said.

Different setting

Meanwhile, another member of Aquino's communications group, Herminio "Sonny" Coloma, said the president will call on the people to exercise their roles as citizens.

"He would like to engage our people in society, the roles we play, and he's going to emphasize that in working together, we really have better hopes of attaining our common goals," Coloma said.

Quzon said there will also be a call for solidarity.

"He will be calling for national unity, but there will parameters for this unity like the peace process, local and national government," he added.

Aquino will also focus on poverty and how it can be better dealt with by eradicating corruption.

"We are lacking social welfare funds because they're being squandered on corruption," Quezon said.

Coloma said the tone of the SONA will be different from the speeches he delivered during the campaign period.

"When he was a candidate, his aim was to get votes. Now as a president, everything that he says will be eventually be associated with his policies and the program of his government," Coloma said.

"It's not just saying something but it's doing the important things that need to be done," he added.

'Keeping the faith'

Quezon added that the president will not be "combative," unlike the previous administration.

"There is a difference with what the president has been doing.  More focused on getting the lay of the land and asserting his authority within the government, like in the AFP, civilian control, and the economic team with instructions to reevaluate all the numbers," Quezon said.

"The president is keeping the faith," Coloma added. "...the people see that he is a leader who speaks the truth, he is a leader who will not tell a lie. Hindi lang hindi magnanakaw, hindi rin magsisinungaling," he said. - With ANC