Vague claims, bold fixes: Statements from Marcos’ 5th SONA that need context

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s fifth State of the Nation Address was filled with bold pronouncements about his administration’s accomplishments and future plans. But Rappler’s research shows that the actual timelines and context that surround Marcos’ statements paint a different picture. He described his government’s actions with the following words: “agad” (immediately) nine times, “bilis” (speed) six times, and “dali” (fast) five times. Most of these words were used to describe his administration’s response to the Middle East crisis, economy and infrastructure that depict his administration as proactive and quick-to-act on the country’s most pressing issues. Beyond that, the President also outlined some novel solutions his administration is pursuing, especially when it comes to the country’s energy needs and education. Here’s what you need to know to contextualize these vague claims and bold promises. Middle East crisis One of the main parts of Marcos’ SONA was about his administration’s response to the Middle East crisis that started on February 28, 2026. Specifically, he said that the government’s responses were done “agad” (immediately). In reality, each of these actions took more than a month — prompted after constant prodding from the public and various crises. State of National Energy Emergency – Declared through an executive order on March 24, 2026, nearly a month after the Middle East crisis first started. Suspension of excise tax on LPG and kerosene – Took effect on April 17, 48 days since the Middle East crisis started and 23 days after Congress granted the President authority to suspend excise taxes on March 25. At the time, the government was also facing calls for faster action from lawmakers and civil society groups. Rice price cap – Imposed a temporary P50-per-kilogram price ceiling on imported rice cap on May 13, 2026, 74 days, or nearly two months, after the crisis began. It came nearly a month after the Department of Agriculture announced that rice prices may jump to P62/kilo by the September harvest season as a result of drastic increases in fertilizer prices affected by the Middle East conflict. Economy Kumilos agad tayo upang pigilan ang mabilis na pagtaas ng presyo ng bilihin. Hinikayat ang mga bangko at e-wallet na magbawas ng mga karaniwang singil sa bawat transaksyon na online. Kaya ngayon, maraming bangko at e-wallet na ang nagbaba o nagtanggal ng kanilang sinisingil na online transaction fee. (We took immediate action to curb the rapid rise in the prices of goods. Banks and e-wallet providers were encouraged to reduce standard fees for online transactions. So now, many banks and e-wallet providers have lowered or waived their online transaction fees.) The timeline, however, shows that the first reduction in online transfer fees was implemented 82 days after the Middle East crisis began. The first reduction came from government-owned LANDBANK, which lowered its InstaPay transfer fee from P15 to P8 on May 21, nearly two months after Marcos declared a State of National Energy Emergency. It also waived fees for online government payments beginning June 1. Other banks and e-wallets followed in the succeeding weeks. Infrastructure Ang mga nasirang tulay — sa San Juanico sa Eastern Visayas, Cabagan-Sta. Maria sa Isabela, Piggatan sa Cagayan, Calbiga at Liloan sa Samar, at Panul-iran sa Iligan — ay kaagad nating naayos at ngayo’y nagagamit nang muli. (We immediately repaired the damaged bridges — San Juanico in Eastern Visayas, Cabagan-Sta. Maria in Isabela, Piggatan in Cagayan, Calbiga and Liloan in Samar, and Panul-iran in Iligan — and they are now back in use.) But Marcos failed to mention that not all of these bridges he mentioned have been restored to full capacity. San Juanico Bridge is still undergoing rehabilitation, and is expected to be fully restored by October 2026 — more than a year after it was initially subjected to load restrictions in May 2025. Calbagan-Sta.Maria bridge is open only to vehicles up to three tons as of March 2026. Only Phase 1 of rehabilitation of Calbiga Bridge was completed in June 2026. It is still being subjected to load restrictions as full restoration is still ongoing. The collapsed Piggatan Bridge was not fixed, but instead a detour bridge was made while construction for a permanent replacement bridge continues. Sa susunod na taon, bubuksan na rin ang labindalawang istasyon ng MRT 7. (Next year, the twelve stations of MRT-7 will also be opened.) Marcos correctly claimed in his SONA that the MRT 7 has been 30 years in the making, but has remained under construction ever since. What Marcos failed to mention is that those delays occurred during his own administration, too. In 2024, the Marcos administration initially projected partial operations by 2025. Design changes later moved the completion date to 2028. Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Parliamentary Elections In accordance with Republic Act No. 12317, the BARMM electorate is now poised to partake in BARMM’s first regular parliamentary elections — a critical accomplishment under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro. What Marcos failed to mention is that it took four postponements before it was officially slated to be held on September 14, 2026. Deemed a “critical accomplishment under the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro,” the elections were supposed to start in May 2022, but were postponed to May 2025 to coincide with the midterm elections. Elections were again postponed to October 13, 2025 after the Supreme Court ruled Bangsamoro Autonomous Acts 58 and 77 as unconstitutional. Marcos Jr. then signed Republic Act No. 12317, which rescheduled the elections to September 14, 2026. Environment Aside from leaving out mentions of delay in his SONA, Marcos also presented several solutions to the country’s pressing issues in an overly positive light. Hydrogen gas will serve as back-up fuel for our power plants, especially useful for our off-grid areas. It is also touted as the world’s clean fuel of the future. But not all types of hydrogen gas are considered a clean source of energy. Marcos failed to mention what type of hydrogen gas his administration is planning to use. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s climate portal says 95% of hydrogen produced globally is “grey hydrogen,” one type of hydrogen created using natural gas or other fossil fuels as the energy input. This makes it carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases-heavy, with over 830 million tonnes of CO2 generated annually as a direct result of hydrogen production. For hydrogen gas to be considered completely clean, it must be one of two types. Green hydrogen is made using renewable energy sources like solar or wind to create hydrogen gas by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen, while white hydrogen is extracted from underground deposits. Education In response to the tragic Tacloban school shooting in June, Marcos said his administration is strengthening efforts to guide and care for the nation’s children. Sa tulong ng unang batch na sampung libong school counselor associates na ipapasok natin sa mga pampublikong paaralan, ang mga anak natin ay mayroon nang malalapitan para sa angkop na payo sa anumang mabigat na pinagdadaanan o bumabagabag sa kanilang isipan. (With the help of the initial batch of 10,000 school counselor associates we will deploy to public schools, our children will have someone to turn to for appropriate guidance regarding any challenges they are facing or anything bothering them.) Marcos failed to mention that a school counselor associate can’t conduct counseling. Their responsibilities are limited to tasks like conducting programs; assisting in advocacy, training, documentation, and initial assessments; providing psychological first aid; and administering health screening tools. Students in need of counseling must be referred to the school division counselor if the school has an associate only. The President also outlined his plans for the classroom shortage that the country is facing. For its part, the private sector too will construct its initial share of more than 16,000 classrooms in Luzon, by way of PPPs. Additional PPPs with higher production targets will soon follow for the Visayas and Mindanao. However, the target classroom production by the end of the Marcos administration is far from the 166,000 classrooms the country still lacks. This shortage was disclosed by the Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM 2) during a hearing of the Senate committee on basic education. The commission also anticipates that the number may still balloon. At least 51,222 classrooms will have reached more than 50 years of age by 2028, which will make the infrastructure unsafe. – with reports from Lourence Marcellana, Ava Dumaup, Angel Cesa, Lance Magno, and Shay Du/Rappler.com Ava Dumaup, Angel Cesa, and Lance Magno are interns and volunteers of Rappler’s Research and Data unit.