Arroyo vows to push Duterte admin’s priority measures at the House

July 24, 2018

Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo on Tuesday vowed to ensure priority measures of the Duterte administration will pass the House of Representatives.

Arroyo, a former Philippine president, made the statement a day after she was elected to replace Davao del Norte Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez as the new Speaker.

"I am extremely honored to have been supported by my colleagues at the House of Representatives to be their new Speaker," Arroyo said in a statement.

"I will endeavor to carry out the legislative agenda of President Rodrigo Duterte in the Lower House," Arroyo said.

Arroyo was elected Speaker by a vote of 184 -12 during a Monday night session held after Duterte finished his State of the Nation Address at the Batasan Complex.

Duterte's speech was delayed by more than an hour as he met Alvarez and Arroyo separately over the leadership row.

Arroyo, 71,  spent nearly four years in hospital arrest due to a now-dismissed plunder case filed by then Justjce Secretary and Senator Leila de Lima. The Supreme Court acquitted Arroyo in 2016. DMS