Duterte gives teleprompter operators ‘special mention’ during Sona

President Rodrigo Duterte during his final Sona. Screengrab from government broadcast online

MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte during his last State of the Nation Address (Sona) on Monday, admitted to being confused with the flow of his speech on the teleprompter, saying that it might be due to his numerous ad libs.

Duterte appeared to have stopped numerous times in his speech, correcting himself before telling the crowd that the teleprompter may already be drowsy.

“It’s either I am talking too fast, or too slow, or the operator of this thing here is drowsy maybe because I had so many ad libs along the way,” Duterte said.

“Marami ho akong, aking lang, kaya ho nahinto, when I stop, and I process something in my, the gray matter between my ears, hindi alam ng operator,” he added.

Despite the issue, Duterte said that he still loves the teleprompter operator.

“Hindi bale ma’am, mahal pa rin kita.  Lalake ba ito o ‘yong mga babae?  Kagabi ‘yong mga babae eh.  Oh sabihin mo sa kanila makipag-kita ako sa kanila mamaya, I will embrace them for their punctuality in operating, you know, this strange machine that gives you the speech,” he added.

Duterte’s last state of the nation address means that he has less than a year before he steps down from office — a term that has been marred by controversy with his war against illegal drugs.

But aside from the issues, Duterte’s tenure also marked questions about his health, as he stepped into office at an advanced age.  Before the Sona, Duterte appeared to temporarily lose his balance, although he regained his footing without much help.

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JPV