by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. administered the oath of office to Ralph Recto as the newly appointed secretary of the Department of Finance on 12 January 2024.
Finance Secretary Recto said that “My job description is not just written in law, but dictated by economic conditions, shaped by what the people want, and directed by the nation’s development plan. And all of these are distilled into one objective: To promote growth that all of our people can benefit from, that results in the improvement of their lives, and secures the future of generations to come,”
He likewise stressed the need to sustain the reform momentum by building on proven best practices and drawing on experience to fine-tune rules in order to optimize potential and maximize gains.
Prior to assuming the Finance Secretary role, Recto served as Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives in the 19th Congress, representing the 6th District of Batangas.
His extensive political career includes three terms in the Senate (from 2001 to 2007 and from 2010 to 2022), where he held key positions such as Senate President Pro Tempore (16th to 18th Congress) and Senate Minority Leader (17th Congress). He started his political career as the Representative of the 4th District of Batangas from 1992 to 2001.
Secretary Recto has previously been a member of the country’s economic team as Socioeconomic Planning Secretary of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) in 2008.
