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Cristina Chi - Philstar.com
May 18, 2026 | 1:45pm
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has appointed University of the Philippines assistant professor and former budget undersecretary Kim Robert De Leon as the secretary of the Department of Budget and Management.
This ends a five-month leadership vacuum at the agency that began when former DBM chief Amenah Pangandaman stepped down amid the flood control corruption scandal.
At 35, De Leon is now the youngest member of the Marcos Cabinet. He takes his oath on Tuesday, May 19, Malacañang said.
He replaces acting secretary Rolando Toledo, who has led the DBM since December and will move to the Government Service Insurance System as a member of the Board of Trustees representing government retiree associations.
"A career public servant, Secretary De Leon is recognized for his work in fiscal management, organizational reform, and digital transformation," Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in a briefing.
A return to the agency he once served
De Leon served as DBM undersecretary from 2021 to 2022, handling the Organization and Systems Improvement and Information and Communications Technology Groups. He earlier worked as assistant secretary and director IV at the same agency.
He then moved to the Department of Transportation, where he served as undersecretary for administration and finance from 2022 to 2024 under then Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista. He also held posts at the Office of the President as director III and presidential staff officer before joining UP Diliman's National College of Public Administration and Governance as an assistant professor.
De Leon graduated magna cum laude and valedictorian from the same UP college.
He topped the 2016 Environmental Planning Licensure Examination and holds master's degrees in urban and regional planning and in public safety administration.
