SONA preps already In final stages, PSG chief says

Presidential Security Group (PSG) commander Colonel Ramon Zagala on Wednesday said the security preparations for President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.'s first State of the Nation Address (SONA) is already in its final stages.

"We’re at the final stages of the preparation," Zagala told reporters.

Zagala said the PSG has been making the necessary coordination with other concerned agencies, including the police and the fire personnel, to ensure that "no untoward incident will happen during the SONA."

"So these preparations are being planned since last week and that we at PSG, we are prepared in coordination with the Philippine National Police so that everything will [be] smooth... from the time he arrives, he delivers his SONA, until he returns to the Malacañang Palace," Zagala said.

Zagala guaranteed that there would be sufficient personnel who will secure not just the Marcoses but also other guests who will be attending the event.

"We assure you that we will deploy enough personnel to protect the President, the First Family and all those attending. As you know, it is not just the President attending the SONA... there will be members of the House of Representatives, the Senate and other guests that will be attending, which will be part of the protection that PSG will give during the SONA," he said.

So far, the PSG has not received any information that will "derail" Marcos' first SONA on July 25, according to Zagala.

More than 21,000 security personnel will be deployed for the SONA, according to the National Capital Region Police Office.

The PNP earlier said a gun ban will also be imposed in Metro Manila from July 22 to July 27 to guarantee security during the SONA. — RSJ, GMA News