By Argyll Cyrus Geducos
CASIGURAN, Aurora --- President Duterte administered the oath of office to Bernadette Romulo-Puyat as the new Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary in Malacañang Monday night.
PRIVATE WORDS — President Duterte chats with Agriculture Undersecretary Berna Romulo-Puyat during the opening ceremonies of the Agrilink/Foodlink/Aqualink expo at the World Trade Center in Pasay City Thursday night.
(Richard Viñas | Manila Bulletin)
Puyat is taking over the post after Wanda Teo resigned from her post due to the anomalous P60-million advertisement deal between the DOT and the government-run PTV-4.
Puyat was joined by her daughter and her parents during the oath-taking.
After the ceremony, President Duterte hosted a simple dinner for the newly appointed Tourism secretary and her family along with several guests at the President’s Hall.
Puyat's appointment was welcomed by some Senators. Majority leader Tito Sotto; and senators Grace Poe, Migz Zubiri, and Kiko Pangilinan all vouched for the integrity and credibility of the new DOT Secretary.
Prior to her appointment, Puyat has been an Undersecretary for Administration, Agribusiness and Marketing, and Regional Engagement at the Department of Agriculture (DA) since July, 2017.
She also served as an Undersecretary for Special Concerns at the Agriculture department during the Aquino administration. She likewise served in the government of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as a consultant at the Presidential Management Staff.
Puyat is the daughter of former Senator and Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto Romulo and Rosie Lovely Tecson-Romulo. She was widowed in 2010 after her husband, Atty. David Puyat, died of heart attack.
She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Economics from the University of the Philippines where she also taught for nine years.
Puyat will be replacing Teo who stepped down due from her post in the DOT last week due to the anomalous deal that involved her brothers Erwin and Ben Tulfo.
Earlier, President Duterte said he is sad to that some of his appointees were involved in corrupt practices, especially those who urged him to run for president. Despite this, the President said that he had no choice but to let them go.