.
What the ruling communists have not yet realised (or perhaps refuse to acknowledge) is that the Central Bank Governor’s job is not to be loyal to the President of the Republic but to ensure the autonomy of his institution from the political arena.
This means that Athanassios Orphanides should be and feel free to express his opinion, especially when it comes to the sorry state of the island’s economy.
On the one hand, the Governor, as regulator, is found wholly responsible and often to blame for the state of the banks, the driving force of the island’s services-based economy. On the other hand, if banks do well, then the government takes all the credit because of its “sound economic policy” and is all too pleased to slap a fresh tax on them in order to raise more funds to pay the bloated civil service wage bill.
First, we had the Akel Secretary General screaming last year that the Governor “should apologise” or retract his projections about unemployment. Apart from the fact that Mr Orphanides was, unfortunately, proven right and the jobless situation has worsened, he should have been taken more seriously by an administration that claims to be on the side of the workers.
Then we had President Christofias stopping short of calling Orphanides a national traitor, even suggesting that there was some sort of conspiracy to undermine the administration’s successful track record in attracting FDIs, keeping public spending in check and investing in growth. He even blamed an “alliance” of opposition members and “others”, probably suggesting the Governor, for the latest downgrade from Standard & Poor’s.
Perhaps Mr Christofias should take a page out of the manuals of some of his predecessors and act in a manner more fitting a president, rather than throwing accusations in all directions. No one is blaming President Christofias for single-handedly destroying the economy, but he is to blame for not doing enough to curb public spending, drastically reduce the civil service and revive the economy by investing in innovation and competitiveness in all sectors.
Instead of churning out awards, small change in aid and title deeds, perhaps the President ought to listen to the Governor’s concerns that the authorities had pledged in December to take structural reforms to substantially improve the country's finances.
In a presidential manner and as chief executive of the whole nation, perhaps he should take the initiative and call upon all social partners and political parties to join a platform of “national unity in economy” to help resolve current problems and build for the future. Or else, there will be nothing left to bequeath to the next generations.
