MANILA, Philippines – What are civil society leaders expecting to hear from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s upcoming State of the Nation Address (SONA), and what, for them, is the true state of the country?
Watch Rappler’s pre-SONA panel with community leaders on Friday, July 19, at 7 pm, on this page, or Rappler’s YouTube and Facebook pages.
Rappler head of community Pia Ranada moderates the discussion with our guests representing various sectors:
- Sonny Africa, economist and executive director of IBON Foundation
- Matthew Christian Silverio, an education reform and student rights’ advocate who is national spokesperson of the Student Council Alliance of the Philippines
- Mimi Doringo, a community organizer and advocate for urban poor rights, representing Kadamay and Inklusibo
- Ira Cruz, an inclusive transportation advocate and director of AltMobilityPH
Among the discussion points will be an assessment of President Marcos’ performance in tackling specific aspects of governance – from improving the quality of education to providing decent wages. Rappler released an interactive “Marcos Year 2 Report Card” that allowed citizens to grade the President, by emoji.
Send reactions and comments about the panel discussion to the Philippine Politics channel in the Rappler Communities app. Insights from your messages, as well as the pre-SONA panel, will contribute to our live coverage of the SONA on Monday, July 22.
Be The Good is Rappler’s community show focused on advocacies and campaigns.
Watch other episodes:
- Be The Good: The state of transgender rights in the Philippines
- [Be The Good: Let’s Talk Liveability] Should Quiapo and Escolta be declared as heritage zones?
- [Be The Good: Let’s Talk Liveability] Commuters, cyclists watch and weigh in on Marcos’ traffic summit
- Be The Good: A special panel discussion with ‘Women on a Mission’
- [Be The Good: Let’s Talk Liveability] PAREX and reimagining Pasig River
- Be The Good: Leo Laparan II on standing up for campus press freedom
- Be The Good: Sharon Cortez on forest schools, getting kids to go outdoors
- Be The Good: Nanie Guanlao and Carmela Bunyi on spreading community reading centers
- Be The Good: Robie Siy on creating streets for people
- Be The Good: Sabrina Gacad on helping victims of gender-based violence
- Be The Good: Cielo Magno on her call to abolish confidential funds
– Rappler.com