A pleasant afternoon to everyone joining us in this celebration of passion and dedication.
Assalamu alaikum wa Raḥmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
First, I would like to extend my sincerest congratulations to our awardees. It truly warms my heart to know that the Public Financial Management (PFM) Competency Program is run by very able and passionate individuals. While you come from different backgrounds, you are bound by a common purpose: to promote a strong PFM system in the country resulting in better management of our public resources in order to ultimately uplift the quality of life of our fellow Filipinos.
As Budget Secretary, I have been dedicated to institutionalizing budget reforms and enhancing our PFM initiatives. I firmly believe that a strengthened PFM is our country's springboard to success. It is definitely a key to attaining our Medium-Term Fiscal Framework or MTFF goals and achieving our Agenda for Prosperity.
Personally, I have been exposed to PFM throughout my twenty years of public service. Being in the DBM—the Executive, the Legislature when I was in the Senate, and even Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, nasaksihan ko at natutunan ko kung gaano kahalaga ang PFM sa pagpapatakbo ng gobyerno, sa pamamalakad ng pamahalaan. Hence, I cannot stress enough how instrumental PFM is.
Bukod sa akin, alam ko naman na ang bawat isa po sa inyo rito ay may sari-sariling kuwento—mayroon po diyan sa mga trainor, marahil ‘yung mga tinatawag natin na shy-type noong nagsimula pero kalaunan ay very confident na, o kaya naman ay nahatak o napakiusapan lang na sumama pero ngayon ay naghahatak o nag-iimbita na ng mga kasama sa ating competency program, o ‘yung mga mayroong trainees-turned-colleagues dahil ‘yung dating tinuruan nila ay ngayon nagtuturo na rin sa PFMCP.
Whatever your story may be, today, we celebrate you and your stories. To the pillars of PFMCP, thank you for your leadership and guidance especially during the program’s inception. To our PFM champions, thank you for embodying what being a PFM practitioner truly means. To our pioneer subject-matter experts, thank you for generously sharing your knowledge and time. To our PFMCP mentors, thank you for helping us improve how we deliver the program. To our PFMCP partners, salamat sa relentless support. To our PFMCP speakers, thank you for lending your voice. And, to the PFMCP Team, thank you for making all of this possible.
Sa lahat po ng bumubuo ng PFMCP, taos-puso po akong nagpapasalamat at sumasaludo sa inyo. Kayo po ang dahilan kung bakit nadala na natin ang PFMCP sa iba’t ibang panig ng bansa—mula sa Region I hanggang sa BARMM. Sana po ay patuloy ninyo kaming samahan at suportahan na pag-igihin at pagandahin pa natin lalo ang ating PFM practice sa bansa. At makakaasa po kayong patuloy din ang Department of Budget and Management sa pagsusulong ng mga programang tulad nito.
To end, allow me to quote former U.S. President John F. Kennedy: “Each time a man stands up for an ideal or acts to improve the lot of others…he sends forth a ripple of hope.” Relatedly, I believe that each of us in this room, who willingly shares their skills and heart in forwarding the cause of this program, is a force that creates ripples of change. And I am confident that, collectively, these ripples will become waves of transformational change for the nation and our fellow Filipinos, tungo po sa Bagong Pilipinas.
Maraming salamat po. Mabuhay po kayo! To Usec. Luz [Cantor], thank you po, salamat po at dumating po kayo.
Wabillahi Tawfiq Wal Hidaya, Wasalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu.
