HOUSE LEGISLATORS ARE ROLLING out the red carpet for the supposedly “most unpopular” President since 1986, spending an initial P90 million to transform the Batasang Pambansa into a modern classy structure in time for President Macapagal-Arroyo’s State of the Nation Address tomorrow.

Rep. Prospero Nograles later expedited the facelift, breaking up the plan into phases, probably in time for his first Sona as Speaker.

Majority Leader Arthur Defensor said the upgraded House would help the institution cast off its “trapo”—pejorative street-speak for traditional politician—image.

“If it can’t be totally eliminated, at least it can be drastically reduced,” Defensor said.

Ms Arroyo, whose public approval ratings have plunged to new record-lows going into her eighth Sona, will share the rostrum with an unaccustomed companion as Jose de Venecia, with whom she shared the dais in the last seven Sonas, has been replaced as Speaker by Nograles.

De Venecia, who has reverted to being an ordinary congressman since being ousted by Palace allies last February, said he is staying away from the Sona this year. He said he would instead fly to Bangkok for a United Nations forum on good governance.

“All her Sonas have been 50 percent factual and 50 percent exaggeration,” he said.

“She needs to tell the truth as a first step to addressing the problems of the nation,” he added.

During the annual event, which coincides with the reopening of Congress, the President reviews her administration’s performance against the Sona of the previous year and then sets out her hopes and plans for the coming year.

Nograles said of his first Sona that it would be “an exciting historical experience.”

“I hope Mindanao will notice that for the very first time there will sit someone ‘promdi’ in the rostrum,” said Nograles, the first Speaker from the country’s south.

“I hope I won’t get nervous and start to bang the gavel at the wrong time and for the wrong purpose,” he said in a text message.

According to House secretary general Marilyn Yap, Nograles wants the new Batasan to be a “showcase,” along with his being the first Speaker from Mindanao.

“He’s on a legacy mode. Beyond the renovation, he really wants to perform. That’s why he’s killing himself so the House can pass 87 bills by December,” she said.

Yap said the idea also was to turn the House into a tourist destination, like other parliaments abroad.

“We want to see students visiting the complex and be proud of it,” she said.

The refurbished seat of the House of Representatives bids fair to rival other parliamentary structures in the world. By the time the renovations are completed in 2010, the House would have spent a total of P200 million, said Yap.

Workers were rushing finishing touches Saturday on the initial phase of the renovation that began in the second week of June. Both the north and south wings of the complex have been widened, and the flooring replaced with shiny, new tiles giving the place an atmosphere of luxury and expensiveness.

The rest rooms in the main lobby, for instance, can compare with those of any five-star hotel’s.

And the building’s facade has been covered with steel panels apparently to conceal the cracks, washed-out color and other blemishes.

All to be upgraded

Overall, the new House has a face that is stylish and more welcoming.

Yap said the ongoing renovation is only 20 percent of the planned facelift. All the hearing and conference rooms, individual offices of congressmen, and the entire cooling system are also to be upgraded, she said.

“As it is now, the new Batasan will make it hard for many congressmen to notice it,” she said.

Yap said the renovation plan was first presented by the House’s engineering department to De Venecia in 2004. She said De Venecia gave the go-signal but wanted the renovations done a little at a time.

Arroyo arrival

According to a Palace statement, the President, escorted by her husband, Jose Miguel Arroyo, will arrive at the Batasan at 3:30 p.m. and will be met with arrival honors by the House Honor Guards.

The President, who will be wearing a Filipiniana attire made of silk from Misamis Oriental and pineapple fiber from Aklan, will troop the line with the Armed Forces Chief and sergeants-at-arms of the House and the Senate.

Waiting to receive her will be Nograles and Senate President Manuel Villar.

At 4 p.m., the second joint regular session of the 14th Congress will be opened, with the President’s Sona as its highlight.

(For full coverage of the Sona online: http://www.inquirer.net/sona)