President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. administered the oath of newly appointed Education Secretary Juan Edgardo “Sonny” Angara on Friday evening, officially welcoming him to his Cabinet.

“Welcome to the Cabinet,” President Marcos told Secretary Angara shortly after his oath-taking at the Malacañan Palace.

The President appointed Secretary Angara to lead the Department of Education (DepEd) after former Education Secretary and Vice President Sara Duterte tendered her resignation from the Cabinet post in June this year.

Her resignation took effect on Friday.

President Marcos said Secretary Angara’s oath-taking also formalizes his position in the Cabinet. He expressed confidence and optimism regarding the new leadership in the Education Department.

“We are looking forward to many good things to come from his appointment. We have had some discussions before he took his oath to give ourselves a good idea of what we think needs to be done,” the Chief Executive said.

“I know that Sonny knows what is important and I know that he knows how to get things done and so I am very, very optimistic for DepEd,” he added.

For his part, Secretary Angara expressed his gratitude to President Marcos for entrusting him with the post.

“I’m extremely grateful to our President for entrusting me with this important task to lead a very important department, to use the President’s words. Mr. President, I know how much you value education, as much as every Filipino family does,” Angara said.

“I look forward to working very closely with you in the coming days and months for the needed reforms in our educational system for the benefit of our young learners, for the benefit of future generations, Mr. President,” he added.

Angara officially took the helm of the DepEd on Thursday after Vice President Duterte turned over the post in a ceremony at the DepEd Complex in Pasig City. PND