Duterte picks Bahay Pangarap as official residence

Following the footsteps of former President Benigo Simeon Aquino III, President Rodrigo Duterte picked Bahay Pangarap as his official residence.

Special Assistant to the President Bong Go confirmed this on Wednesday, according to a tweet by GMA News reporter Joseph Morong.

Go said Duterte will move in next week.

LOOK: Bahay Pangarap which will be Pres. Duterte's residence accdg to Bong Go. (Seen in 2010) | via @Joseph_Morong pic.twitter.com/3aJZIxW1wl

— GMA News Breaking (@gmanewsbreaking) July 6, 2016

Duterte, before taking his oath on June 30, had said that he does not want to stay in Malacañan Palace because of "ghosts."

He also said that he plans to shuttle between Manila and his bailiwick Davao City to enjoy the comforts of his own bed and his old mosquito net.

During his first weekend as the President, Duterte flew back home to Davao.

However, he spent his first night as the country's Chief Executive at a hotel in Pasig City where he also stayed during the campaign period.

Bahay Pangarap

Bahay Pangarap is located within Malacañang Park. Its complex used to be the recreational retreat of former presidents, which was introduced during the time of late President Manuel L. Quezon in 1936.

It has served various presidents as one of the main areas for entertainment since then.

However, it was only Aquino who picked it as his official residence instead of the Malacañan Palace.

Aquino and Duterte are not the only Presidents of the Philippines that chose other places as their official residence.

After late President Ferdinand Marcos moved out of the Malacañan Palace in 1986, Aquino's mother, the late President Corazon Aquino, decided to live in Arlegui Guest House and held office in the Premier Guest House.

Former President Fidel V. Ramos, her successor, also decided to live in the Arlegui Guest House but held office in the Palace.

Former President and incumbent Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada, meanwhile, remodelled the Premier Guest House into a combination residence and office.

However, former President and incumbent Pampanga Representative Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo returned to the Palace and made it both her residence and office. — VVP, GMA News