President Duterte delivers his first State of the Nation Address.
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PRESIDENT Duterte yesterday declared a unilateral ceasefire with the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front effective immediately.

“To the CPP/NPA/NDF, let us end these decades of ambuscades,” Duterte said in his first State of the Nation Address (Sona).

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Duterte also vowed to pursue “permanent and lasting peace” before his term ends.

Furthermore, he said he would address the legitimate grievances of the Bangsamoro people, indigenous peoples, and other groups toward achieving security and development.

The Armed Forces said it strongly supports Duterte’s announcement for a unilateral ceasefire.

“The Commander-in-Chief has initiated a very bold move and we fully support him in his efforts to bring sustainable and lasting peace to our whole country,” Armed Forces spokesperson Brig. Gen. Restituto Padilla said.

Padilla said the AFP would abide by Duterte’s instruction but would remain alert, vigilant and ready to defend itself, and pursue attackers if confronted by NPA rebels.

“The government has shown its sincerity and we expect no less from the other party. Our people long for and deserve peace and we shall work diligently as we have been doing all these years to deliver just that,” he said.

Bangsamoro

Duterte also urged Congress to pass the proposed Bangsamoro law minus the unconstitutional provisions that are contentious in order for peace to prosper immediately in Mindanao pending the shift to a federal system of government.

Duterte said that only federalism would put an end to the Muslim conflict in Mindanao.

“Yung BBL ibigay na natin, minus the things that you do not want, yung mga constitutional issues, tanggalin muna natin,” he said. “Nandiyan na yan e. I ask you to pass it minus the constitutional issues that are contentious. Ibigay na natin and when the federal system comes, isama mo na sa package. That’s the solution for Mindanao.”

He added: “Nothing else will work. Believe me, nothing else will do. Please sleep on it and ponder on it. That’s the only way to proceed.”

War Against Drugs

But while Duterte announced the unitaleral ceasefire and spoke about Mindanao peace, he stressed the government’s war against illegal drugs.

He said the government will not stop in its fight against illegal drugs until drug lords and financers will be put behind bars or “below the ground if they wished so.”

Duterte reiterated his administration would relentlessly fight illegal drugs along with criminality and corruption.

“I repeat: do not do drugs,” Duterte said.

Duterte said human rights must work to uplift dignity. “Human rights can’t be used as a shield or excuse to destroy the country.”

He said he would put at stake his life, honor and even the presidency in the fight against illegal drugs.

He said the government would create an Inter-Agency Committee on Illegal Drugs and integrate efforts and strengthen partnerships with stakeholders.

Duterte also said the government would prioritize rehabilitation of drug users and increase number of residential treatment facilities.

“We will also prioritize the rehabilitation of drug users,” he said. “We will increase the number of residential treatment and rehabilitation facilities in all regions of the country.”

Citing a report from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA), there are some three million users and pushers nationwide.

Some 120,000 drug users and pushers have already “surrendered” to authorities, Duterte said.

Over 200 alleged drug users or pushers have already been killed in the government’s “all-out war” against illegal drugs.

Tax Reforms

But while the “war” against illegal drugs is ongoing, Duterte vowed to pursue tax reforms. He said the aim is to lower rates for both personal income tax and corporate tax.

He noted that pushing for tax reforms would foster job creation as more investors would be attracted with the competitive tax rates here.

In Southeast Asia, the Philippines has the highest rates for income and corporate taxes.

Various business groups have been asking the government to cut tax rates in order to make businesses in the country more competitive.

Duterte said the government would attract more investments which generate high number of jobs for Filipinos.

He said the government would push for the country’s competitiveness, ease of doing business, and even relaxing some restrictions on economy to entice more investments in the country.

He stressed the need to attract more investments in sectors of manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism.

Duterte also pushed to address bottlenecks in getting business name registration and permits, particularly in the local government level.

Applause

Duterte’s first Sona gained applause from members of the 17th Congress, diplomatic corps and other guests who attended the occasion.

Spectators to the event clapped 77 times at Duterte’s first Sona, which lasted for more than one and a half hours.

On the sidelines of his Sona, the President cracked some jokes which added a little humor to the formal ambiance of the occasion.

He was highly applauded for his plans and programs particularly on the war against crime and illegal drugs, quality of government services, infrastructure development, decongestion of vehicular traffic in Metro Manila and the improvement of telecommunications in the country, particularly the provision of a free wi-fi access in various public places.

Most of the applause that the President received also came when he mentioned plans for big-budget projects such as the Mindanao Rail Project, upgrading of the stateun TV station, PTV-4, extending the validity of passports from five to 10 years, and extending of the validity of driver’s license from three to five years, to name a few.

Staying true to his word, Duterte did not blame the previous administrations when he gave his first Sona and instead focused on his 10-point agenda.

This includes the drive for constitutional change to allow a shift to a federal form of government, fight against illegal drugs, the ruling on the South China Sea, and the comprehensive tax package, among others.

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