(Eagle News) — Former House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez said it was already time to “get back to work and move on” two days after he was unceremoniously ousted from his post and replaced by Pampanga Rep. and former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, July 25, the Davao del Norte lawmaker said, “We cannot undo the past, but we can certainly shape our future.”
“The House of Representatives has chosen a new Speaker in the person of former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Alang-alang sa bayan (For the sake of the nation), let us get back to work and move on,” he said.
Alvarez issued the statement after a meeting with the newly installed House Speaker, Arroyo, on Wednesday morning, two days after he was ousted from office in a surprising turn of events at the House of Representatives on Monday, July 23, on the day of President Rodrigo Duterte’s third State of the Nation Address (SONA)
It was Arroyo who reportedly initiated the meeting with Alvarez.
Arroyo was accompanied by Pampanga third district representative Aurelio “Dong” Gonzales Jr., when she talked to former House Speaker Alvarez.
Gonzales said the meeting was cordial.
Arroyo had reportedly even offered Alvarez her former office.
The former House Speaker was already packing his things, ready to leave the House Speaker’s office, when Arroyo came to meet him. (Eagle News Service)