BARELY a week after the commencement of 17th Congress, Mark Villar has formally relinquished his duties as district representative of Las Piñas City in order to sit as Cabinet member in President Rodrigo Duterte's administration.
The exact date of his resignation was not disclosed, but Villar formally took his oath of office as Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) chief before Duterte in Malacañang on Monday afternoon.
According House Majority Floor Leader Rodolfo Fariñas, Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez “designated” Villar’s wife, DIWA Party-list Representative Emmeline "Em" Aglipay-Villar, as “caretaker” of the legislative district his husband left.
“According to Speaker [Alvarez], Representative Mark Villar has resigned and that the Speaker will designate Representative Em Aglipay-Villar as the caretaker of the district vacated,” said Fariñas.
Duterte first announced the appointment Villar last May in Davao City. However, legal issues surrounding the appointment forced Villar to defer his assumption of office.
Then-House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. said that Villar should first take his oath of office as Las Piñas legislator and then resign so the Commission on Elections can conduct a special election for the position he will leave behind. (Sunnex)