Exploring Philippine Presidents’ speeches: A sentiment analysis and topic modeling approach

Abstract

This study analyzed the annual obligatory and traditional speeches, referred to as State of the Nation Address (SONA), of the 13 past Philippine presidents. The study determined the sentiments, as well as the emergent topics, expressed in these materials. It is found that these SONAs generally expressed positive sentiments while the lowest negative sentiment, on the other hand, was during the martial law period in 1974. Also, it is shown that “development” is the most frequently appeared word among these speeches. The study also revealed that the sentiments of the incoming presidents were lower than that of the outgoing. Moreover, it is shown that these SONAs mainly focused on the following concerns of the country: (a) economic development; (b) enhancement of public services; and (c) addressing challenges. The results of the study translate into the importance of SONA as a venue to discuss and to engage with its people the nation’s state and direction.