Ralph Recto鈥擲enate PRIB
Ralph Recto鈥檚 promise of improved tax collection, an intensified anticorruption campaign and judicious public spending won him the support of the legislative Commission on Appointment (CA), which unanimously affirmed on Wednesday his designation as the 43rd secretary of the Department of Finance (DOF).
鈥淚鈥檓 confident that Recto鈥檚 extensive experience as a legislator 鈥� has prepared him well for this demanding position,鈥� Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri, who also chairs the CA, said before approving the finance chief鈥檚 confirmation.
鈥淲hen he was in the Senate, [he was] our 鈥榥umbers guy鈥� not only because he was brilliant in crunching the numbers, but more importantly because he could see the big picture,鈥� he added.
Speaking with reporters later, Recto ruled out the possibility of returning to the legislature in next year鈥檚 midterm elections as he expressed his intention to serve as President Marcos鈥� finance chief until the end of his term in 2028. He also made a bold prediction for the future of the Philippine economy.
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鈥淏y 2028,鈥� Recto said, 鈥渨e expect the poverty incidence to go down to 8 to 9 percent from the current 16 percent. And then we will [reach the] upper middle-income status by 2035.鈥�
鈥淏y 2050, the Philippines will be the 14th biggest economy in the world. We鈥檙e on track. So we will join G20 by 2050 if you follow the trajectory,鈥� he added, referring to the organization of the world鈥檚 biggest economies. Before he was appointed head of the President鈥檚 economic team in January, Recto was a deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, returning as Batangas representative after completing his two six-year terms as senator.
Addressing his former colleagues, Recto assured the lawmakers anew that the DOF would not push for the passage of new taxes under his watch.
Instead, the finance department would implement 鈥渃urated projects鈥� aimed at 鈥減lugging tax leaks, improving tax administration and preventing wasteful expenditures,鈥� he said.
Pro Cha-cha
The former veteran legislator said the DOF would also craft policies to encourage foreign companies to bring in investments, and he expressed his support for efforts to ease the restrictive economic provisions of the 1987 Constitution.
鈥淲e will boost investments by reducing the cost of doing business, improving the regulatory regime and ending constraints,鈥� Recto said.
鈥淚n the words of the President, replacing red tape with a red carpet, but, if I may add, without sweeping the unsavory under the rug or trampling rights and rules,鈥� he said.
As traditionally observed during the confirmation of former lawmakers named to Cabinet posts, several members of the House-Senate body wanted to swiftly approve Recto鈥檚 appointment without asking him any questions.
However, opposition Sen. Risa Hontiveros posed several policy questions, picking the finance secretary鈥檚 mind on his plan to institute reforms in the Bureau of Internal Revenue and Bureau of Customs, both graft-plagued state agencies and the government鈥檚 primary sources of revenues.
Responding to Hontiveros鈥� questions, Recto said the DOF would implement policies to 鈥渋mprove tax administration efficiency鈥� and address the tax gaps in both agencies.