Duterte arrives at Batasan for 4th SONABy The Manila TimesPRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte arrived on Monday afternoon at the House of Representatives in Quezon City for his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA). The Chief Executive was received by Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of-Staff General Benjamin Madrigal Jr., Senate sergeant-at-arms Rene Samonte, and House sergeant-at-arms Rolando Detabali. Last year, the President’s SONA lasted for 48 minutes, considered his shortest so far. Duterte, known for his long impromptu speeches, opted to read an expletive-free speech after a House leadership scuffle delayed the SONA activity. His 2016 SONA lasted for one and a half hours while his 2017 speech went on for two hours.

Source: Manila Times July 22, 2019 09:00 UTC