Some senators slam President’s report

The staunch critics of President Arroyo at the Senate were disappointed over her supposed final State of the Nation Address (SoNA) Monday.

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel, Jr. said Mrs. Arroyo’s ninth and final speech before Congress was a “total waste of time.”

“For people to have been fooled before by the promises of a good SoNA was plain stupidity. To be fooled the ninth time around is utter insanity, total waste of time, and unforgivable,” Pimentel said in a text message to reporters.

Sen. Francis Escudero said he is disappointed that she “did not say goodbye” to the people which they have all been waiting to hear from her.

“I’m disappointed she did not clarify her stand on Charter change and her 2010 plans,” Escudero said.

Escudero also said it was a “glass half-filled” speech with scant mention of the “glass half-empty” part of the picture.

“There was no mention of corruption in government and the human rights situation. I would have wanted a more balanced presentation to complete the picture of the true state of the nation,” Escudero said.

“I seriously doubt and will check her figures on the construction of 95,000 classrooms, 60,000 teachers, eight million jobs, and two million hectares of irrigated lands. I disagree with still ‘reactionary’ policies regarding Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs),” he added.

But Escudero said he noted Mrs. Arroyo made some good points in her speech. “I agree though with the following: condonation of P42 billion in obligations of Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) beneficiaries; continuation of the hunger mitigation program; concentrating on revenue collection efficiency; a knowledge-based economy as the way of the future; and exploring the settlement of conflicts via talks instead of bullets, with exception of terrorists,” Escudero said.

“To be fair, masipag naman talaga siya. Kung saan nga lang ginagamit ang sipag, ibang usapan na iyon. And I hope her last line meant goodbye,” he said.
Other senators said President Arroyo merely used the SoNA as an avenue for critic-bashing.

“Hindi ko pinagpapansin ang mga ganyang banat, ang pinapansin ko ay ang hinaing ng ating mga kababayan,” Sen. Manuel Roxas II who was alluded to by the President on the Cheaper Medicines Bill.

Roxas is author of the Senate version of the bill that seeks to lower the price of medicines. He is also a staunch critic of the Arroyo administration. He declined to attend the SoNA and instead joined street protesters in Quezon City.

Sen. Rodolfo Biazon also said he was waiting to hear from Mrs. Arroyo a specific program for national unity but was upset by what he heard.

“I wanted to hear what should be done to end this insurgency (in Mindanao) in 11 months. Nobody is arguing about that we need a government-initiated peace process, but how do we end the insurgency? I did not hear it on her presentation,” Biazon pointed out.

Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, for his part, said Mrs. Arroyo deserves the “best actress award for portraying a good, honest, and productive president.”

“(There is) major disconnect between PGMA’s speech and the reality being experienced by the Filipino people. Like a student being kicked out of school for failing too many subjects giving a speech at the graduation claiming to be an honor student!” Cayetano said.

Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan said notwithstanding the absence of a formal farewell, he said the people will have to simply bring her to the door come the May, 2010, elections so as to ensure her exit.

Sen. Loren Legarda, said the SoNA did not “reach the stomachs of hungry Filipinos.”
The President’s SoNA, while having less gimmicky compared to those of previous years, continued to be a hit-and-miss affair, she said.

Earlier, at the opening of the new session of the Senate, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile led the senators in warning the House of Representatives that they would shoot down any move to convert Congress into a Constituent Assembly to amend the Constitution.