The Commission on Appointment (CA) on Wednesday unanimously approved the ad interim appointment of the Department of Finance (DOF)
Secretary Ralph Recto.
Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri announced the former senator’s confirmation following the motion of CA Assistant Minority Chair Rep. Johnny Pimentel.
“What we need for our Secretary of Finance is someone who has the mind for the numbers but whose heart is firmly set to uplift the lives of our people. Someone who will work towards not only for the upwards trajectory of our GDP (gross domestic product), of our economy, but also ensure that whatever growth rate we achieve as a nation will be felt by our lower income and marginalized sector as well," Zubiri said.
Senator Ramon Revilla Jr., the chairperson of the CA Committee on Finance, likewise endorsed his former colleague's appointment after a short panel deliberation.
"With him at the helm, we know that the Department of Finance is in good hands," Revilla said.
"Through his great attention to detail and relentless pursuit of the greater good, many of the measures that this institution has produced have been cultivated and refined for the benefit of the nation," he added.
During the deliberation, Recto bared his priorities as DOF chief, which included increasing government revenues to effectively execute the 2024 national budget and to boost investments by reducing the cost of doing business, ease of doing business, improving the regulatory regime, and ending constraints.
"In my mind, the best way to inculcate tax obedience is still to promote ease of payment and to show that taxes efficiently collected are effectively spent," he told the panel.
He also assured that the DOF would continue to employ measures that will shield consumers from inflation which is an "unlegislated tax that the people should not bear."
Aside form being a former lawmaker, Recto also served briefly as chief of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) during the Arroyo term.
