SONA fast facts

The State of the Nation Address (SONA) is a constitutional obligation.

Article VII, Section 23 of the 1987 Constitution states, "“[T]he President shall address the Congress at the opening of its regular session.” Moreover, Article VI, Section 15 prescribes that the Congress “shall convene once every year on the fourth Monday of July for its regular session.”

Once a year, Philippine Presidents are mandated to report on the state of the country and present the government’s agenda for the coming year. 

Presidents may also propose certain legislative measures that Congress may act on to achieve the administration's agenda. — Veronica Pulumbarit and Jannielyn Ann Bigtas/RSJ/BM, GMA News