It’s not fair to Aquino who hasn’t reached his first 100 days as Chief Executive of the country. The opposition should understand the son of former President Cory Aquino is on the stage of picking up the pieces where his predecessor Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo left off. P-Noy is still gathering all the resources he needs to be able to build a strong nation and overcome all the woes he inherited from GMA.
Lawmakers especially Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman should take into consideration that Aquino is still a neophyte in this position. Lagman said the first SONA of the President is defective, deficient and divisive. It shouldn’t be treated that way. Opposition politicians like Lagman should give Aquino a chance since it’s the first time of the commander-in chief to address the country and his experience is not yet extensive.
In his “counter-SONA,” the opposition lawmaker said Aquino’s SONA was generally a partisan press release, not a blueprint for development and policy direction.
“(It was) a complaint sheet, a compendium of motherhood statements and a continuation of campaign rhetoric,” Lagman said.
Lagman said his counterSONA sought to correct Aquino’s allegations against former President Gloria MacapagalArroyo.The House minority had waited to be informed of Aquino’s legislative agenda, he added. Lagman said that instead of presenting a roadmap on policies and programs, the President gave a discourse on inherited problems that overwhelm him and painted an atmosphere of woe with very tentative and deficient solutions. “The SONA was bereft of specifics or particulars,” he said. “His proposals were virtually hanging in the air and most probably, he expected Congress to fill in the blanks.
“Or was it purposely vague or ‘safe’ so that the people could not hold him accountable for a concrete program once it fails?” Lag-man said.
“But when the Emperor wears no clothes, can I honestly tell you that his robe is regal and majestic?” he said. Lagman also said that Aquino suffers from a “prosecutor’s complex” made evident when he announced that he will sign an executive order to create a Truth Commission to investigate alleged misdeeds of Arroyo while in office.“(Mr. Aquino’s ) divisive disposition plants a wedge among our people and leaders, instead of integrating and unifying sectors of society and institutions,” he said.
