The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines elected Archbishop Gilbert Garcera of Lipa as its next president.
The election took place on the first day of the bishops’ 130th plenary assembly in Anda, Bohol on Saturday
Garcera, 66, currently serves on the CBCP Permanent Council as regional representative for Southeast Luzon.
He will succeed Cardinal Pablo Virgilio David of Kalookan, who was elected to the post in July 2021 and will complete his second and final term as president in November.
Also elected was Archbishop Julius Tonel of Zamboanga, who will serve as CBCP vice president. The 68-year-old will replace Bishop Mylo Hubert Vergara of Pasig, whose second and final term also ends in November.
Garcera will lead the bishops’ collegial body for the next two years.
He has been archbishop of Lipa, home to more than 3.3 million Catholics, since 2017, and has previously chaired the CBCP Commission on Mission and Commission on Family and Life.
Before becoming a bishop, Garcera also served as assistant secretary general of the CBCP, executive secretary of the Episcopal Commission on Mission, and national director of the Pontifical Mission Society.
He was ordained priest for the Archdiocese of Caceres in 1983. In 2007, he was appointed bishop of Daet, a role he served until he was transferred to the Lipa archdiocese.
In 2014, he was one of three Philippine bishops who served as delegates to the Synod on the Family at the Vatican.
Garcera, Tonel and other members of the Permanent Council will officially assume their posts on Dec. 1, 2025.