President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. expressed his gratitude to former Department of Finance (DOF) Secretary Benjamin Diokno for his excellent performance in the agency as he extended him warm wishes for his return to the Banko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
“We cannot finish this event here this afternoon without a very heartfelt and warm wishes and gratitude to Secretary Ben Diokno for the services that he has given to the Department of Finance in his time as Department of Finance [Secretary],” President Marcos said.
The President made the remarks when he introduced former Deputy Speaker Ralph Recto as the new Finance Secretary and Frederick Go as Special Assistant to the President for Investment and Economic Affairs with the rank of Secretary at the Malacañang grounds on Friday afternoon.
President Marcos recalled asking Diokno, then governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to take over the DOF to get the economy going and put all the policies on the right track amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Being one of our country’s pillars of economic management, we shall continue to rely on your expertise and exuberance as a member now of the Monetary Board [of the BSP]. Maraming, maraming salamat from a grateful nation, Secretary Ben Diokno,” the chief executive said.
President Marcos said he initially asked Diokno to join the Maharlika Investment Fund and its management, but he begged off, saying as it is “not what he feels is a specialty of his.” He was then offered to join the Monetary Board.
“Once again, I cannot thank Secretary Ben Diokno enough for setting the economy on to the right path. He has guided us, he has put the essentials into place, he has made the structural changes that we need,” the President said.
“And therefore, he has – these economic figures, the results that we are getting a lot of that can certainly be attributable to the work that he did as Department of Finance Secretary,” the chief executive added.
Diokno is joining the BSP Monetary Board, replacing Peter Favilla whose term concluded on July 2, 2023.
Before his post to the BSP, Diokno served as BSP Governor from March 5, 2019 to June 30, 2022 and a former secretary of the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), among other posts both in private and public sectors. *PND*
