Councilor Bernard Al-ag to take over as Davao City vice mayor

Councilor Bernard Al-ag is set to replace Paolo Duterte as the new Davao City vice mayor.

In the weekly "Pulong-pulong ni Pulong" press conference, Al-ag said he was still serving vice mayor in an acting capacity because he has yet to receive the order of the Department of Interior and Local Government for his oath-taking.

"Today, I'm still the acting vice mayor of the city because we are still waiting for the go signal of Department of Interior and Local Government, sila ang magsabi na pupwede na akong mag-oath. Isa na lang po ang kulang, so the oathtaking na lang," he said.

"Whenever we will take our oath, [I] will be officially the new vice mayor of the city. But right now for our first session for this year, I will be the acting vice mayor," he added.

Al-ag is the majority leader in the Davao City Council and has earned the highest percentage of votes in the 2016 elections.

Based on the provisions of the Local Government Code, the next highest ranking official shall take over the vice mayoral seat.

President Rodrigo Duterte on January 5 accepted the resignation of his son, Paolo.

Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte said that only the Office of the President could accept the resignation of his brother.

In his resignation letter dated December 25, Paolo mentioned his alleged involvement in the Bureau of Customs smuggling case and his public spat with his 17-year-old daughter, Isabelle.

He said these were "unfortunate" incidents that were linked to his first marriage. He was then married to Lovelie Sangkola, with whom he had three children. — MDM, GMA News