SONA 2021

How Duterte managed to make his last SONA the least interesting event of the day

Sofia Virtudes

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How Duterte managed to make his last SONA the least interesting event of the day
It appears the only interesting thing about President Duterte’s last SONA is how it is upstaged by a Filipino woman who, unlike him, does not bow down to China

It was almost impressive how President Rodrigo Duterte held his final State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, July 26, and yet still managed to make it the lesser momentous event of the day.

On Monday, July 26, Duterte delivered an almost three-hour SONA, his sixth and last, marking the beginning of the end to a regime that had been marred by a brutal drug war, countless human rights abuses, and a mishandled pandemic response.

Much to no one’s surprise, the repetitious speech gave us nothing we didn’t already know. To top it off, Duterte even admitted he didn’t know how to handle the pandemic, which is currently the country’s biggest enemy (although the NTF-ELCAC would beg to disagree, iykwim).

As Twitter user @prodeeboy put it, “This SONA could’ve been an email.”

No superlatives could make up for what was deemed an anticlimactic finale to his controversial administration – not especially when these superlatives were “worst,” “most exhausting,” and “most nonsense,” to name a few.

While he did make a record for delivering the longest SONA in post-EDSA Philippines, everyone would agree that that title sounded just as lackluster as his tedious speech.

https://twitter.com/nikidelights/status/1419613784277012488?s=21

But here’s what really takes the cake: on the same day, a Filipino woman single-handedly lifted, almost literally, the weight of a nation that had been brought down by their leader.

Hidilyn Diaz on Monday ruled the 55kg in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics weightlifting competition, bagging the Philippines’ first ever Olympic gold medal.

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Many saw Diaz’s historic win as the rainbow capping off the long, rainy day that was Duterte’s SONA. 

https://twitter.com/AlyssaAshleyC/status/1419640498654826500

So how did Duterte manage to become the second most interesting person on SONA day?

With his government’s failure to provide facilities for athletes, his blatant show of misogyny, and his submission to China (which by the way he defended up to his last SONA), Duterte just made himself built for the perfect literary device to someone else’s poetic justice. He became the antihero in what was otherwise his big day.

Diaz, who was once linked to an unsubstantiated plot to oust Duterte, and who once begged for sponsorships due to lack of support, just schooled a sexist leader on how to bring honor to the country, how to make history worth remembering, how to inspire an embattled nation, and most importantly, how to beat China.

Now that’s poetic justice.

https://twitter.com/imthegreench/status/1419652106814857221

While Filipinos were no strangers to disappointment from Duterte and his government, some still had hopes that he would finally apologize in his last SONA and take accountability for his administration’s failures. Some managed to hand over backhanded flattery: the only good thing about Duterte’s last SONA was that it was his last.

As his term nears its end and a new era dawns, we hope Duterte takes with him the lesson of the day: a strong woman can topple a strongman. – Rappler.com

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Sofia Virtudes

Sofia Virtudes is a former digital communications specialist for Rappler.