Sin tax, RH laws highlights of Noy’s SONA

MANILA, Philippines - The passage of the sin tax and reproductive health laws will be among the highlights of the fourth State of the Nation Address President Aquino will deliver before a joint session of Congress on July 22.

“I think the passage of the sin tax measure, which was one of the things mentioned by the President in the previous SONA, would be on top (of the agenda),” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said yesterday.

In a briefing in Malacañang, Valte said the Presidential Communications Development Strategic Planning Office under Secretary Ricky Carandang would prepare the accomplishment report of the Aquino administration.

She said work on the SONA for 2013 “has already started.”

“Traditionally, we start work on the SONA around February because a big part of crafting the SONA is making sure that the departments have put in their respective reports on areas of accomplishments  they would want to be mentioned,” she said. “Nonetheless, the details or the nitty-gritty of the accomplishments still have to be verified by the Office of the President, which means this may take a longer while.

“I understand that the President has started to talk about the rudiments of his speech for this particular year. What the focus will be is something that is still fluid and under discussion,” Valte said.