Diokno as new BSP chief: I will choose the right words, be circumspect

The straightforward and controversial remarks of outgoing Budget Secretary Benjamin Diokno will be a thing of the past as the incoming Philippine central bank chief said he will be cautious in making comments on various economic issues.

As Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) governor, Diokno said he has to be "circumspect."

"As BSP governor, you have to be circumspect, careful with your words or choose the right words because the statement of the central bank governor can really move the market," the incoming BSP chief said at a breakfast forum in Manila on Wednesday.

Diokno has earned the ire of several lawmakers and netizens for his straightforward and oftentimes perceived as "insensitive" comments on various economic issues such as inflation, weakening peso, salary of teachers, and rice tariffication.

To recall, the outgoing Budget chief said that Filipinos should not be crybabies amid the high inflation situation.

He also commented that no person would ever go hungry in the Philippines only if one will do hard work as President Rodrigo Duterte called for overseas Filipino workers to go home.

"The way I talk na direct to the point, sometimes brutal... Hindi puwede 'yun as BSP governor," Diokno said.

The outgoing Budget chief said he will swear in as the new BSP governor on Wednesday afternoon and formally assume office on Thursday morning.

He will take over the post left behind by the late BSP Governor Nestor Espenilla Jr., who died last month after battling tongue cancer for more than a year.

Malacañang said earlier that Diokno's appointment as BSP chief no longer needs the confirmation from the powerful Commission on Appointments (CA).

For those who question is eligibility as the new central bank chief, Diokno said a BSP governor need not be a banker.

"Chairman of the Federal Reserve come from the academe," he said.

"I know how the government works... I know the BSP is supposed to be independent," he added.

The outgoing Budget chief said he has experience in the banking sector as he worked as an independent director for Asia United Bank.

Diokno completed his Bachelor's degree in Public Administration (1968), Masters in Public Administration (1970), and Master of Arts in Economics (1974) from the University of the Philippines Diliman.

He also earned a Master of Arts in Political Economy from the Johns Hopkins University in the United States (1976) and a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Economics from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University (1981).

Diokno is also Professor Emeritus at the University of the Philippines Diliman where he taught for 30 years. — RSJ, GMA News