Less than two months before President Duterte steps down from office, Malacañang formed a transition committee to ensure the smooth transfer of power to the next president, Communications Secretary Martin Andanar revealed.

Andanar made this statement less than a week before Filipinos elect the next president on May 9, 2022.

In his press briefing on Wednesday, May 4, Andanar said Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea had been tasked to lead the transition committee.

"The Office of the President (OP) created a transition committee chaired by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea to prepare and implement the Office of the President Transition Plan," he said.

He, however, said he was not informed about the other members of the committee yet.

"Wala pa po sa akin ang listahan ng mga miyembro ng transition committee ng Office of the President (I don't have the list of members of OP's transition committee yet)," Andanar said.

"Babalikan po namin kayo pag binigay na po ng Executive Secretary ang mga pangalan ng miyembro (We will update you once the Executive Secretary gives us the names of the members)," he added.

In March, Andanar said President Duterte was working hard to ensure the smooth transition of power to his successor so that the next chief executive would not have difficulty dealing with the country's challenges.

In a radio interview, the acting Palace spokesman said that Duterte did not want his successor to have a hard time facing the challenges from dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic to keeping the economy afloat.

“Gagawin ng Pangulo ang lahat para ang transition ay smooth at hindi mahirapan ang susunod na gobyerno na harapin ang mga bagong hamon (The President will do everything to ensure a smooth transition so that the next administration will not have a hard time facing the new challenges),” he told Super Radyo DZBB.

“Iyong mga hamon na nanggagaling sa... iyong mga external factors katulad ng giyera sa ibang bansa na nakakaapekto sa ating ekonomiya (The challenges caused by external factors like the war in other countries that affect our economy),” he added.

President Duterte said in February that he has been preparing to leave Malacañang, the official residence of the Philippine president. He said he has been packing his belongings to move out by March, months before his term ends on June 30.

Meanwhile, Andanar said President Duterte has made it evident since December last year that the focus of his administration in his remaining days in office would be ensuring an effective response to the Covid-19 pandemic until the armed in Eastern Europe erupted.