MANILA, Philippines – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has appointed Filipina-Canadian Rechie Valdez as his small business minister.,” an emotional Valdez said as she began to take her oath as a new Cabinet member on Wednesday, July 26. Trudeau was seen nodding his head after she opened her oath with the Filipino salutation.
The audience cheered as they watched Valdez passionately take the oath. Fighting back tears, Valdez finished: “I, Rechie Valdez, do solemnly and sincerely swear that I will truly and faithfully, and to the best of my skill and knowledge, execute the powers and trusts reposed in me, as minister [of] small business. So help me God.”
Valdez is Member of Parliament for Mississauga-Streetsville. She became the first Filipino woman to be elected as a Canadian MP in October 2021. IMPASSIONED. Rechie Valdez wipes a tear as she is sworn in as Canada’s Minister of Small Business, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau looks on, during a cabinet shuffle at Rideau Hall, in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, on July 26, 2023. Blair Gable/Reuters