MANILA — Securities and Exchange Commission Chairperson Emilio Aquino is set to end his seven-year term next month. And he hopes his successor can continue some of the projects he started.

“I’m hoping and praying that we have somebody who is also open-minded and will be adopting the digital-first priority as part of his chairmanship, his or her,” he said.

Aquino, who was appointed by former President Rodrigo Duterte in 2018, has expanded the digital services of SEC and has pushed for sustainability among corporations. It was also under his watch that SEC moved its headquarters from EDSA-Ortigas and the PICC to the current office in Makati in 2022.

Aquino said in jest, “We used to be there in that condemned building in Ortigas which made us prayerful because every time we’ll go up, we don’t know when it’ll go down.”

He said moving the Makati was a big morale boost for the employees and this he said is one of his biggest achievements as SEC head which is to improve employees’ lives and improve the organization. This also resulted to a more customer-friendly corporate watchdog.

“We try to be as customer-centric as we can. Not perfect. May mga complaints pa rin. You can’t please everyone. But mas maganda service delivery natin dito,” he added.

When asked if he is open to a reappointment, he said, “It’s up to the boss. I’m just doing my thing. I had my time. I had my chance. That’s really up to them.”

And he hoped that if not him, then the next chairperson can also adapt to the changing times to address rising issues of cybersecurity and even climate change.

President Marcos has yet to announce who will succeed Aquino whose term ends in June.