The yearly report of the President of the “state of health” of our country has turned into such a spectacle that one may wonder if we are watching a red carpet showbiz event or gala. This is not to belittle our President's earnest efforts at instituting reform but it seems our lawmakers have made it a glitzy business that misses the point. The fanfare that surrounds the SONA with all the affluent trappings of wealth and glamour does not speak well of the genuine sincerity and desire of our political masters to share in the plight of our people. Flaunting 25,000 peso designer barongs and gowns ,even if given for free or sponsored or paid for out of their own pockets is hypocrisy of the highest order. It does not befit the occasion and only highlights the lack of empathy to the majority who endure their day in quiet suffering, toiling a living. That this is more worthy of showbiz only reflects how blurred our sensibilities have become.

In fairness to the President who has inherited a lot of ills from the past, he is trying his best to the best he can. This may not be at par with our expectations but he is trying at the very least. Whether his efforts will have created a significant impact, only history can judge. As with the past SONAs, many things we would have wanted so much to hear were left out, leaving those that read between the lines worrying about their interests. Long awaited projects that were highlighted in the past but not alluded to now could be a cause for concern among affected folks and could be interpreted as hanging in the balance. The blabber that cited all the accomplishments made and implemented may very well be a good subject for lengthy debate but the true state of the nation lies outside the august halls of congress.

It is seen in the dingy shanties that dot the back roads of our country's premiere financial district and the long queues of working people in their daily commute and the monstrous traffic jams night and day in the metropolis that result to incidents of road rage. It is seen in the daily exodus of migrant workers at our international airports and the rising levels of unemployment and the high prices of basic commodities that constitute our daily staple. It is seen in the rising crime rate and the discovery of scam after scam shaking the very foundations of our government institutions and the slow wheels of justice that mete out injustice after such a long and arduous grind. Figures and numbers may differ and statistics may be improving but to the ordinary citizen who has to scrounge to earn his daily keep these don't matter. The language best understood by the majority of the poor and hapless folk is the language of food. We may be fortunate to be eating three square meals a day with extras but to the deprived it is a senseless affront to their dignity to romp around in all your finest livery in a one day showoff!

The protesting folk who took to the streets have a lot to criticize and cry about. Their grievances are legitimate and should not just be brushed aside. Before we enjoyed the perks of democracy many of our chosen leaders once took to the streets to air their grievances, lest they forget. But sad as it is, the stark reality is this is the country we have become over time. Although we can gloat in our being touted as the next emerging Asian miracle and be proud at having overcome the image of being the sick man of Asia let us not stop on these empty laurels. The President no doubt has been exerting a lot of effort and dedication in his commitment to the people but it simply is not enough. We need more action than words more deed than rhetoric. The state of the nation should be a dynamic evolution, a yearly transition from good to better to best. Its address should not be treated as a spectacle and made a red carpet event. Many heads of state including the President of the most powerful country on earth do so without fanfare and red carpet. The delivery is often stern and straightforward not a forum for sycophants and “lick-asses” who greet with thunderous applause every word said as though it were magic. This is the true state of our nation best reflected in the true state of ourselves!