Senate, House start preps for Marcos 2026 SONA

Officials of the Senate and House of Representatives held an initial meeting on Tuesday to discuss preparations for President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s 2026 State of the Nation Address (SONA) in July.

Senate Secretary Mark Llandro Mendoza and House Secretary-General Cheloy Garafil went to the Senate in Pasay City for the initial coordination meeting.

In an ambush interview, Mendoza said both Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III and House Speaker Faustino “Bojie” Dy III agreed to keep this year’s SONA “simple.”

“Inagahan na namin kasi July na eh. Baka may mangyari before doon kaya nag-usap na kami ng preparations for the SONA. ‘Yung mga normal na pinag-uusapan—security at preparations ng co-chambers,” Mendoza said.

(We started the preparations early because the SONA is in July. Something might happen before then, so we already discussed preparations. The usual matters—security and preparations of both chambers.)

“Simple lang. Mas simple pa sa dati… Because of what’s happening right now, tame down muna,” he said.

(Just simple. Simpler than before… Because of what’s happening right now, we are toning it down.)

The SONA is the annual report of the President of the Philippines to Congress, delivered every fourth Monday of July.

It serves both as a constitutional obligation and a political event, during which the President reports on the country’s condition and outlines the administration’s priorities and agenda for the coming year.

The SONA is mandated under Article VII, Section 23 of the 1987 Constitution, which states: “The President shall address the Congress at the opening of its regular session.”

Mendoza, however, clarified that the looming impeachment trial of Vice President Sara Duterte was not discussed during the meeting. He said succeeding discussions will include officials from the executive department.

“Inagahan namin para mas madali ang preparations namin,” he added.

(We started early to make preparations easier.)

Congress will adjourn sine die on June 5 and will resume session on July 27 for the fifth SONA of President Marcos, Jr.—MCG, GMA News