BANGKO Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Benjamin Diokno accepted the invitation of the incoming Marcos government to head the Department of Finance (DOF) and vowed for policy continuity to sustain economic recovery.

In a statement issued on Thursday, Diokno said “it is an honor to serve the Filipino people in my current and any future capacity.”

“I am grateful and humbled by the trust given to me by the President-elect to help his administration manage the country’s fiscal affairs,” he said.

He said the improvement of economic policies in the past administrations has provided the economy the boost to transition into an upper-middle-income economy, which the current administration hopes to achieve this year if not for the pandemic.

He explained that “as the country transitions to the next administration, it is my view that continuity of sound macro and fiscal policies is important to achieve the stronger post-Covid Philippine economy that we all aim for.”

“As Finance Secretary, I will strive to continue prudently and carefully balancing the need to support economic growth, on one hand, and to maintain fiscal discipline, on the other,” Diokno added.

Diokno’s term as BSP chief is supposed to end in July 2023 following his appointment in March 2019 while heading the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

He will be replaced by BSP Monetary Board (MB) Member and former Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Felipe Medalla, who will finish Diokno’s unexpired term. Philippine News Agency

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