Duterte going off-script made SONA  more personal, Andanar says

An official of the Palace on Monday lauded the decision of President Rodrigo Duterte to go off script in his first State of the Nation Address (SONA).

Presidential Communications chief Secretary Martin Andanar said that the President's spontaneity was Duterte's way of reaching out to the public.

"I think ad lib really made it more personal. The President himself, he has this magic touch with the masses. Siguro kung hindi n'yo na-appreciate sa loob ng halls of Congress, I am sure if you go and walk in the side streets and in the streets where our class C, D, E live, they appreciate what the President did," Andanar said.

"Pinaintindi ng Presidente kung ano ang kanyang ibig sabihin doon sa State of the Nation [Address]," he told to reporters outside the plenary hall of the House of Representatives after Duterte's SONA.

"I did expect the ad libs but I did not expect it to be this long," Andanar said.

Andanar previously said that Duterte's SONA would take 38 minutes long. But the actual speech went on for over one and a half hours.

While delivering his SONA, Duterte often addressed those handling the teleprompter to skip long paragraphs, making his audience laugh

"Parang prerogative na ng Presidente iyon eh na hindi niya sinama ang mga iyon," he said. 

During the campaign period, Duterte's spontaneous speeches can drag on for hours that his 12-year-old daughter Kitty Duterte had to remind him to end his speech in some instances. —NB, GMA News