Metro Manila, Philippines — Education Secretary Sonny Angara easily obtained the nod of the Commission on Appointments (CA) on Wednesday, Aug. 7, as former colleagues in Congress gave praise to the newest Cabinet official.
It was the same process earlier in the day when the CA committee on education swiftly recommended the approval of Angara’s appointment with lawmakers not posing questions as a matter of courtesy.
Sen. Raffy Tulfo, the panel chairman, told the CA plenary that he took “this duty very seriously because the person who will take on the leadership of the Department of Education (DepEd) will make decisions that will determine our country’s future.”
“Fortunately, the person appointed by our dear president made this job easy for us because he appointed someone whose background and body of work equipped him with knowledge, experience, and passion to be the secretary of the department,” Tulfo said.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appointed Angara as the new DepEd chief on July 2. He replaced Vice President Sara Duterte who quit the post effective July 19.
Duterte’s stint as DepEd chief was marred with her controversial request for confidential and intelligence funds — normally reserved for uniformed and military personnel and other intelligence practitioners that have direct impact to national security.
Angara’s to-do list includes improving the competencies of Filipino students amid low scores in the Programme for International Student Assessment.
NewsWatch Plus Multiplatform Producer Jelo Ritzhie Mantaring contributed to this report
