CA confirms Chua’s appointment as NEDA chief

The Commission on Appointments (CA) on Wednesday confirmed the appointment of Karl Kendrick Chua as secretary of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA).

During the CA Committee on Tourism and Economic Development, Chua received unanimous support from senators and congressmen who are members of the bicameral commission.

Among the lawmakers who backed his appointment were Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri, Minority Leader Franklin Drilon, Senators Bong Go, Joel Villanueva, Cynthia Villar, Panfilo Lacson, Grace Poe, Ramon Revilla Jr., Ronald Dela Rosa, and Representatives Luis Ferrer IV and Alex Advincula.

The lawmakers noted Chua’s competency in providing policy directions during the law-making process.

‘Sterling academic record’

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto, who sponsored Chua’s nomination in the CA plenary, also cited the NEDA chief’s sterling academic record.

He tagged Chua as the National Economist for Recovery and Development, who is “the youngest in years, but one of the wisest in experience” among the Cabinet members.

“His [Curriculum Vitae] is a fine print of academic and professional achievements. Taken together, they are the social and economic reforms writ large,” Recto said.

“He has logged 18 years of experience in each of the following disciplines: economic policy, fiscal policy, tax administration, political economy, and tax policy,” he added.

Recto also noted Chua’s role in crafting the “biggest tax hikes” in the history.

Chua was a former undersecretary of the Department of Finance and was one of the faces who pushed for the TRAIN (Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion Law) Law.

He had 16 years of work in statistical development, 15 in public expenditure management, 13 in labor and social protection policy, and 11 in poverty studies.

“The sum, which is more than a hundred years in multiple career tracks, is twice Enrile’s professional record, but achieved at half his age,” Recto said.

The Senate leader also acknowledged Chua’s vital role in preventing the economy from “fully flatlining and to lay the foundations of a turnaround” after the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected the country’s economy.

In April 2021, Malacañang formally appointed Chua as the NEDA chief.

Chua assumed post as the acting Socioeconomic Planning Secretary during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020.

He replaced former NEDA Secretary Ernesto Pernia  who resigned due to reported differences with other Cabinet members. — RSJ, GMA News