New DPWH chief, MMDA general manager named
DPWH Secretary Mark Villar has resigned to run for senator. He is replaced by Rep. Roger Mercado.
MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte has appointed Southern Leyte Rep. Roger Mercado as as secretary of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and lawyer Romando Artes as general manager of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA).
Mercado took over Rep. Mark Villar who resigned to run for senator while Artes replaced Jojo Garcia who quit to run for congressman in the lone district of San Mateo, Rizal.
Mercado, who was sworn in by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea as the DPWH’s new chief, vowed to continue the government’s “Build, Build, Build” program.
Artes previously served as MMDA’s assistant general manager for finance and administration.
In the 18th Congress, Mercado principally authored 66 measures and co-authored 26. He serves as vice-chairperson of the House Committee on Public Works and Highways.
A deputy majority leader, Mercado is also a member of the Committees on Agriculture and Food, Energy, Flagship Programs and Projects, Natural Resources, Persons with Disabilities, Public Order and Safety, Tourism, and Trade and Industry.
Before the 18th Congress, he also served in the 8th, 9th, 10th, 13th, 14th, 15th and 17th Congresses.
Villar, who used to represent Las Piñas in the House of Representatives, resigned last week as DPWH chief to run for senator in next year’s polls.
