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Tuesday, December 23, 2003
Arroyo picks diplomat as new foreign affairs secretary
PRESIDENT Arroyo appointed Foreign Affairs Usec. Delia Albert as new head of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA).
Albert, who was undersecretary for international economic relations, was appointed a day after Foreign Affairs Sec. Blas Ople was laid to rest at the Libingan ng mga Byaani.
Ople succumbed to a heart attack last Dec. 14 while on his way to Bahrain to rendezvous with President Arroyo, who was going to make a two-day state visit in that Middle Eastern country.
Presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye said the appointment of Albert took effect immediately. No date for her oath-taking, however, has been set.
Arroyo held the foreign affairs portfolio in a concurrent capacity until she appointed Ople's replacement. It was the second time Arroyo held the post in a concurrent capacity, the first one was in July 2002 after then foreign affairs secretary, Vice President Teofisto Guingona Jr., resigned.
Albert has been in government service for 36 years. She has represented the country in various capacities in Switzerland, Romania, Hungary, German Democratic Republic, Federal Republic of Germany and Australia.
She first served as assistant to the Office of the Secretary of Foreign Affairs in 1967 and had been representing the Philippines in various multilateral fora like the United Nations (UN), the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), the Asia-Pacific Economic Conference (Apec) since then.
Prior to her appointment, Albert served Special Trade Negotiator with Australia with respect to current trade issues on Philippine pineapples and bananas and was tapped as Philippine senior official for Apec in the Apec economic leaders' meeting held in Mexico.
Albert also served as DFA assistant secretary for policy planning and coordination after her stint as ambassador to the Commonwealth of Australia with concurrent accreditation to Nauru, Tuvalu and Vanuatu in 2001.
She also served as director-general of the Asean national secretariat of the Philippines and secretary-general of the conference secretariat of the 4th Apec economic leaders' meeting that was held in the Philippines several years ago.
Albert is married to German journalist Hans Albert and they have a daughter, Joy Angelika. SCT
(December 23, 2003 issue)
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