President Arroyo, 55, has become a grandmother as the wife of her eldest son gave birth to a baby girl the other night.
Angela Montenegro-Arroyo, wife of Pampanga Vice Gov. Juan Miguel "Mikey" Arroyo, gave birth Monday night to Mikaela Gloria at the Makati Medical Center. Her husband was out of the country at the time.
The presidential daughter-in-law, according to doctors at the hospital, gave birth two weeks earlier than expected. She and her husband named their firstborn after his parents.
Mrs. Arroyo could not disengage herself from her task as head of the Philippine delegation attending the ongoing eighth Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit being held in Cambodia.
The news about Mrs. Arroyo’s first grandchild was relayed to her by her only daughter Luli, who called her up in Phnom Penh.
"The President was very, very happy when she received the news," Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye told Palace reporters via a long distance call to the Malacañang press office yesterday.
Bunye is with Mrs. Arroyo as part of her official delegation in Cambodia.
"She was so excited because this is her first-ever apo," Bunye said.
He added that the President seemed enervated by the news, since she still has official duties to perform before she can see her granddaughter when she arrives in Manila tomorrow.
"The President is doing great here in Cambodia," Bunye said.
Mrs. Arroyo spent a two-day vacation with her husband, First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo, in San Francisco before flying back to Manila last Saturday. She took another flight the next day for Cambodia.
The First Gentleman was still in San Francisco at the time of Mikaela Gloria’s birth. He and another son, Dato, were on vacation.
Asked how he feels about being a lolo for the first time, he replied via text to The STAR: "Actually, I don’t know. I feel excited. Yes, it’s our first, excited!"
However, the First Gentleman will not cut his vacation short. "I doubt it. I am already in (San Francisco). Dato is with me. This vacation was planned. Bonding with my son (is) important, too."
Dato, 27, is the youngest of the three Arroyo children. He himself is due to marry his fiancee next year.
The President earlier said she has ordered some rooms at Malacañang rearranged after Mikey and Angela were married June 24 this year. She has had some rooms refitted to accommodate the grandchildren she expects to dote on. — With AFP