Joseph Emilio Abaya is the new secretary of the Philippine Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC), following Manuel Roxas II’s transfer to the Department of Interior and Local Government.
Roxas replaced Jesse Robredo who was killed in a plane crash more than to weeks ago.
Abaya, a representative of the first district of Cavite, was asked by President Benigno Aquino III to ensure the timely delivery of infrastructure projects such as the rehabilitation of airports and construction of the North Luzon and South Luzon expressway connector project.
“I look forward to working with the current DOTC teams that have undertaken the planning, bidding, and implementation of projects that will revitalize our airport, ports, and other infrastructure: the roads and systems that are the strategic underpinning of our economic progress and expansion,” Abaya said in a statement.
Abaya, who heads the House committee on appropriations, will assume his post by mid-October, after the 2013 budget’s scheduled approval.
Prior to his appointment as DOTC secretary, Abaya, 46, spent 16 years in the Philippine Navy, took an early retirement in 2004 to run for representative of Cavite’s first district, studied law, and then passed the bar in 2007.
Abaya is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy.
Photo from http://www.congress.gov.ph/members/search.php?congress=14&id=abaya-j
