NEW SORSOGON BISHOP. Pope Francis appoints Fr. Jose Alan Dialogo as the new bishop of Sorsogon on Tuesday (Oct. 15, 2019). Dialogo will replace Bishop Arturo Bastes who reached the mandatory retirement age of 75 in April. (Photo courtesy: CBCP)

Pope Francis has appointed Fr. Jose Alan Dialogo to head the Diocese of Sorsogon.

According to an article posted on the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) news website, outgoing Sorsogon Bishop Arturo Bastes made the announcement during the ordination of three men to the priesthood at the Sorsogon Cathedral on Tuesday morning.

The bishop reached the mandatory retirement age of 75 last April. He served the diocese for 16 years.

The appointment was supposed to be announced in Rome at noon Tuesday (6 p.m., Manila time) but Bastes sought permission from Papal Nuncio Archbishop Gabriele Caccia to announce it earlier.

Manila Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle also announced the appointment during a clergy meeting at the San Carlos Seminary in Makati City on Tuesday.

On the other hand, the Holy Father has appointed Bastes as Apostolic Administrator “sede vacante” of the diocese until his successor formally assumes his new post.

The bishop-elect is currently director of the Jaime Cardinal Sin Welcome Home in Sampaloc, Manila, a facility for retired priests of the city.

No date has been announced for Dialogo’s episcopal ordination and installation as the fifth bishop of Sorsogon.