Caloocan Bishop Pablo Virgilio David was elected Thursday as the new president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).
David was elected during the first day of CBCP’s two-day plenary assembly.
David has been CBCP vice president since December 2017. He will succeed Davao Archbishop Romulo Valles.
The Caloocan prelate had a brief stint as acting president of the CBCP when Valles suffered a mild stroke last year.
David is a staunch critic of President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs and on many occasions was on the receiving end of Duterte’s tirades against the Catholic Church.
David was ordained priest for the Archdiocese of San Fernando in Pampanga 1983. He became auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese in 2006.
He was ordained a titular bishop of Guardialfiera in July 2006.
He was appointed as Caloocan bishop on Oct. 14, 2015 and installed to the post on Jan. 5, 2016.
Pasig Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara was elected as the new vice president of the CBCP.
The new officials will assume their posts on Dec. 1 and will serve two-year terms. John Ezekiel J. Hirro