Manila, Philippines— Bayan Muna Partly-list representatives Teddy Casiño and Neri Colmenares on Monday wore personalized barongs to call for the inclusion of their respective advocacies during President Benigno Aquino III’s third State of the Nation Address.

Casiño wore an Edgar San Diego-made barong with the inscriptions “Presyo, Ibaba (Lower prices) on each side.

“Obvious naman na ang panawagan ng karaniwang mamamayan ay ibaba ang presyo ng bilihin, partikular sa kuryente, langis, tubig, pati na sa text (It’s obvious what our fellowmen wants is to lower prices of basic commodities like electricity, water, gasoline, including short messaging system),” Casiño said.

Casiño said it was expected of Aquino to flaunt his accomplishments during his Sona but he questioned whether the accomplishments were actually felt by the Filipino people.

“Sa tingin natin, wala pa. Sa kasalukuyang patakaran, malabong malaman ang pagunlad ng ekonomiya,” Casino said.

Colmenares, for his part, wore a barong with black inscriptions bearing the words “Free political prisoners.”

He said that normally, he went to the Sona with his family but now he was with the child of a political prisoner.

“Dalawang Sona na ng pangulo ang nakalipas pero walang malinaw na plano para sa human-rights violations. Sana ma-address na ang escalating human-rights violations (Two previous Sonas of the President had passed but there’s no clear plan on human-rights violations. This we hope to address soon),” Colmenares said.