Cabinet inputs make it harder for Aquino to cut SONA speech

President Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino III is on the third draft of his first State of the Nation Address (SONA), but Cabinet members’ numerous inputs are giving him a hard time to keep it short and simple. Currently, the draft speech’s length is around 15 pages long, which will take him about 25 to 30 minutes to deliver, so the President is trying to shorten his speech, Communications Group official Ricky Carandang told reporters on Thursday. Aquino's SONA speech, which he will deliver at the Batasan Pambansa on July 26, will cover key points and relevant findings of the status reports submitted to him by his Cabinet, and his administration's immediate plans as well. Cabinet members finished submitting their findings regarding their respective departments on Wednesday night. Another Communications Group official, Manuel L. Quezon III, who also served as Aquino's inaugural spokesman, said Aquino is aiming to limit his speech to around 30 minutes. He said the tone of Aquino's speech will be "conversational." Aquino's inaugural speech had a conversational tone, with the president saying the Filipino people was his "boss" and vowing to end the irresponsible use of "wang-wang" or sirens. "As usual, mixed, but primarily Filipino," Quezon said, referring to the language Aquino will use in his SONA. Aquino has yet to formally create the Communications Group, which is the restructured Office of the Press Secretary. The group, along with the Presidential Management Staff, is helping Aquino draft his speech, but Palace officials maintain that Aquino determines the content and tone of — and makes the final call in — all his public pronouncements. Security arrangements In the meantime, the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) held a coordinating conference on Thursday regarding deployment of forces for Aquino’s first SONA and the opening of the Regular Session of the 15th Congress on Monday. The conference was held on Thursday at Camp Bagong Diwa, Bicutan, Taguig City in line with the Special Task Force (STF) “KAPAYAPAAN" activated by the National Headquarters of the Philippine National Police (PNP). Eight thousand personnel will be deployed for the metro-wide security operation, 5,000 of which will compose Task Group “Quezon" or the security forces primarily deployed in Quezon City, the NCRPO said in a statement. Earlier, the NCRPO held a dialogue with rally organizers and other stakeholders at a Quezon City hotel. It was attended by NCRPO officials led by its Chief, Police Director Roberto L. Rosales, representatives of Quezon City’s Department of Public Order and Safety (DPOS) and other representatives from the Presidential Security Group (PSG) and the Commission on Human Rights (CHR). Representatives from groups such as Sanlakas, Bayan Muna, Pasang Masda, and Piston also attended the meeting. The groups asked that they be allowed to hold their rally as close to Batasang Pambansa as possible. But the NCRPO said that the matter will be discussed, "with due consideration to the security of the President, the Congressmen and Senators, dignitaries who were invited to attend the SONA, as well as the residents in the immediate vicinity of Batasang Pambansa and various villages and subdivisions along Commonwealth Avenue." The NCRPO also said that its intelligence operatives would be in uniform and would just carry video cameras. Six monitoring teams from the CHR will also assist the NCRPO in documenting the conduct of the rallies. NCRPO would be placed on heightened alert starting 6:00 a.m. on Saturday, the statement said. - RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV