Major transgressions by former Central Bank governor Jawala Rambarran included announcing the names of foreign exchange users and making statements with “bravado”, People’s National Movement Senate leader Franklin Khan said yesterday.
He was speaking in the Senate on an Opposition motion calling for condemnation of the PNM Government’s dismissal of Rambarran last year.
However, Khan defended the dismissal, giving reasons. While noting Rambarran had filed a pre-action protocol letter and that the issue might be in court, Khan said Government would not have acted flippantly or irresponsibly in the matter.
Noting sections of Central Bank law (48 to 50 ) stipulating how a governor interfaced with the Finance Minister, including being assigned by the minister on certain matters, Khan also noted the bank had to keep the minister apprised and the minister had to issue written directions on Government’s fiscal and monetary policy.
“Central Bank doesn’t set policy, government does,” he added.
“So this fiction that Central Bank is independent, isn’t so. It’s governed by law...so you can’t have a bravado governor.”
Noting the former governor announced T&T was in recession last December, he said nothing was fundamentally wrong with that but the courtesy of informing the minister was absent and the statement could have been a more “guarded one.” “This was obviously bravado,” he added.
Khan noted the repo rate was raised twice without informing the minister. The other major transgression was announcing major forex users. He noted the bank’s website subsequently removed forex users’ names, which he said indicated its board rethought its position and knew it was breaking the law. He said that had breached the Central Bank Act, Exchange Control Act and Financial Institutions Act. (GA)