Every year, the President of the Republic of the Philippines gives Congress and the people an update about the national situation through the SONA or the State of the Nation Address. This SONA has been practiced by all the Philippine presidents since 1936.

State of the Nation Address was originally mandated by Article VII, Section 5 of the 1935 Philippine Constitution, which states: “The President shall from time to time give to the Congress information on the state of the nation, and recommend to its consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.”

This provision was copied from the United States Constitution, the Philippines being under American rule at the time. The US provision, however, talked of the state of the union.

SONA continues to this day. The 1987 Philippine Constitution requires the President to address the Congress at the opening of its regular session on the fourth Monday of July (Article VII, Section 23 and Article VI, Section 15), which is July 27 for this year, 2009.
(Source here)

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