In his fourth State of the Nation Address (SoNA) on Monday, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. enumerated various social problems from education to health, infrastructure and agriculture.
But when he lauded the Filipino athletes who performed well in the year that passed, the crowd inside the packed Batasang Pambansa burst into laughter.
The Chief Executive brought the house down when he jokingly tagged Philippine National Police (PNP) Chief Gen. Nicolas Torre III as among the Filipino champions who brought pride and glory to the country.
Torre, 55, made headlines over the weekend when he accepted the challenge of Davao City Mayor Sebastian Duterte to a boxing match.
The son of former President Rodrigo Duterte, however, snubbed their scheduled bout, prompting officials to declare Torre as winner by default.
Still, the event generated P16 million which the PNP donated to typhoon victims.
Marcos said Filipino athletes deserve to be credited for their impressive performance in the international arena, where they clinched two gold and two bronze medals in the Paris Olympics last year on top of numerous accolades in various fronts like boxing, tennis, and even in the Paralympic Games and Winter Olympic Games.
“There are the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation to ensure the continued support for the sports programs of our country’s athletes,” Marcos said midway through his 70-minute speech that formally opened the 20th Congress.
“Because of them, our youth are introduced to sports early, become skilled and confident. They follow in the steps of our champions and world-class athletes like (former Senator) Manny Pacquiao, Hidilyn Diaz, Caloy Yulo, Aira Villegas, Nesthy Petecio, EJ Obiena, Alex Eala... our Paralympians Jerrold Mangliwan, Cendy Asusano, Angel Mae Otom and Ernie Gawilan.”
“Let’s also include our new champ, PNP chief Nic Torre.”
Marcos chuckled at his punchline while Torre was seen standing from his seat to acknowledge the lighthearted ribbing from the Commander in Chief.
“Chief PNP was surprised,” Marcos quipped.
But kidding aside, the President is putting premium on Philippine sports following the dawn of the golden generation of Filipino athletes.
He said with the help of the PSC, he will prioritize the development of future members of the national team through various grassroots initiatives like the Batang Pinoy and Palarong Pambansa.
“For example, the Palarong Pambansa and the Batang Pinoy Games, which will be held in General Santos City this October,” said Marcos before a large audience that included PSC chairman Patrick “Pato” Gregorio.
“We will establish a new national program for sports development starting at the school level.”
Gregorio thanked the President for rallying behind the Filipino athletes from the grassroots level all the way to the elite.
“The President’s focus on sports in the SoNA is a testament to the growing strength of our sports development program and its relevance to national development,” Gregorio said.
“We in the PSC recognize this responsibility and are wholly committed to strengthening sports from the grassroots — to build up our athletes and nurture a proud and healthy citizenry.”