Church authorities on Sunday advised President Arroyo to set aside the issue of Charter Change in her State of the Nation Address (SoNA) Monday.

Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Public Affairs Committee Chairman Bishop Deogracias Iniguez said the public has rejected Cha-Cha repeatedly and renewing the call for it may not be good for her public standing. Instead, the prelate said, Arroyo should focus on providing solutions to the problems plaguing the country.

The Caloocan prelate said today’s SoNA should be objective and truthful as it will be her last.

“The more sincere and the more honest it is, the better for her credibility and what’s left of it."

Villanueva said Arroyo had the most opportunity to uplift the lives of 92 million Filipinos yet the country is in worse shape than ever as there are four million more poor Filipinos in 2006 than in 2003 amid declining school enrollment rates and other problems. (Jenny Manongdo)