Making good her promise to appear “respectful and decent,” Senator Nancy Binay on Monday donned a Randy Ortiz-Filipiniana terno with butterfly sleeves and elegant draping for the third State of the Nation Address of President Rodrigo Duterte.
But Binay, who is seeking re-election in the May 2019 midterm elections, poked fun at the color of her gown, saying it matched the carpet inside the Senate Session Hall.
“Nagma-match ako sa carpet. Naha-highlight ako sa carpet,” Binay told reporters as she pointed to the blue carpet that matched her powder-blue gown. But she readily posed for some photo shoots.
The senator has been heckled by bashers on social media due to her choice of clothes during Duterte’s first and second Sona.
In an earlier interview, Binay said she would no longer look like going to do an exercise, but instead would look respectful when the President delivered his third Sona at the House of Representatives in Quezon City.
She promised to look decent since it would be her last attendance at the Sona, being in her last term as senator. But she is still eligible to seek another term in the next elections.
In one of the Sonas, Binay was criticized for wearing something similar to an attire worn by someone set out to do some physical exercises.
During the 2014 Sona of President Benigno Aquino III, Binay was bashed for her gown that looked like the gown of the fictional character Princess Fiona from the animated film Shrek.
Meanwhile, the camp of Senator Cynthia Villar rejected the reports she walked out of the Session Hall when reporters were taking pictures of the senators and their spouses.
But Villar said she left because someone had taken over her seat.
“Someone had taken my seat, so where would I sit down? Villar said.
And while it was true that someone had taken over her seat, Villar said, she no longer minded it because she was to go to another shoot.
Villar wore a simple knee-length piña with a tri-colored embroidered dress in the morning when the Senate opened its session. In the afternoon she was in a red-orange piña suksok with floral embroidery on stylized tails overskirt. Both were created by another famous designer, Noli Hans.
Actress Heart Evangelista, wife of Senator Chiz Escudero, was in a classic Mark Bumgarner white modern Filipiniana with an LGBTQ rainbow pin on her left chest, symbolizing her love for all.
She wore a nude peep toe heels and carried a beige handbag to match her Filipiniana. Her shoulder-length hair, set in big waves, was done by Jerry Javier and her makeup by Albert Kurniawan.
She arrived at the Session Hall with her husband in a traditional Barong Tagalog.
Jinkee Pacquiao, known for wearing high-end clothes, was dressed in a white Filipiniana gown with a modern white Filipiniana pantsuit designed by fashion designer Michael Leyva. She wore her hair neatly tied in a low ponytail. She arrived at the Senate holding hands with Senator Manny Pacquiao.
Senator Grace Poe was so elegant in a simple white knee-length terno with a few subtle beaded details.
The senator, who came with her husband Neil Llamanzares, also wore a sleek ponytail.
Senator Loren Legarda said she was wearing a 10-year-old Filipiniana gown by Paul Cabral. She arrived at the Senate with her son.
Risa Hontiveros was in a Piña Jusi dress paired with a bolero with butterfly sleeves. The fabric was made by the women of the municipality of Lumban, Laguna, designed by Joel Acebuche.
Also, scene stealers were ramp model Prescy, the better half of Senator JV Ejercito, and Tootsie and Aubrey, the beautiful wives of Senators Sonny Angara and Migz Zubiri.
Senator Bam Aquino arrived with his two daughters at the opening session on Monday morning. He had his photos taken while carrying his second child Baby Coco while his firstborn Rory, wearing a floral white dress, was on a stroller beside him clad in a cute white dress.
There were 22 senators who attended the historical moment as Senator Alan Peter Cayetano was appointed to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Senator Leila de Lima was detained at the PNP Custodian Center on drug charges.