Central bank chief bats for successor from within
AN EXPERIENCED central banker would be the country’s best bet for the helm of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) come July next year, Governor Amando M. Tetangco, Jr. — who will step down after serving two terms — said earlier this week before President Rodrigo R. Duterte yesterday vented his ire anew on monetary authorities for allegedly dragging their feet on a probe on an opposition figure being linked to the illegal drugs trade.
Mr. Tetangco’s stint as central bank chief ends July 2017, as he maxes out the two allowable terms provided under Republic Act 7563, or the New Central Bank Act that was enacted in 1993.
Mr. Duterte last month sent an offer for a fresh tenure for Mr. Tetangco, saying he would have the BSP Charter amended by Congress to accommodate a third term for the BSP chief.
Mr. Tetangco has dodged giving a clear answer when asked if he would accept the offer — saying only that he “will cross the bridge when we get there” — but has recommended potential successors.
“As I have said in the past, the country will be best served if someone with central banking
experience would be chosen to take on the helm of the BSP when my term expires,” Mr. Tetangco told journalists in a Dec. 21 e-mail in response to queries, pointing out that shared history within the central bank was key to charting the way ahead.
“Most of the senior management in the BSP have had experience in at least two crises — the AFC (Asian Financial Crisis) and GFC ( Global Financial Crisis). They are familiar with an environment of rising interest rate/ depreciating currency, as well as one of low interest rate/appreciating currency. They have the perspective of past crises, and they also have the exposure to technology and the new ways of doing things, including developing and implementing macroprudential measures.”
Mr. Tetangco, 64, has served the BSP for 42 years, working his way up the ranks to the governorship in 2005 and was reappointed in 2011. He has been recognized as a grade-A central banker by New York- based Global Finance for eight straight years.
BSP Deputy Governor Diwa C. Guinigundo, 62, currently heads the Monetary Stability Sector who monitors the macroeconomy, while Deputy Governor Nestor A. Espenilla, Jr., 58, runs the Supervision and Examination Sector for banks and financial entities.
Deputy Governor Vicente S. Aquino heads the BSP’s Resource Management Sector, including the Security Plant Complex, in charge of printing money and minting coins. He is a lawyer who previously headed the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC).
Also ending their terms by July are Monetary Board members Alfredo C. Antonio, Armando L. Suratos and Felipe M. Medalla, who take part in policy-making.
Economists have previously flagged the looming change in central bank governors as a key concern ahead of a “challenging” global landscape, marked by the impact of additional rate hikes and a Trump presidency in the United States, the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union, and a continued slump in global trade, among others.
Mr. Tetangco assuaged worries over a looming change in the BSP’s leadership.
“As I had said in recent interviews, whoever will be appointed as the next BSP Governor will be at the helm of an institution that has strong governance structures in place, that is attuned to its primary objectives and that has a good track record of achieving its mandate,” the central bank official said.
“The governor will be ably supported by a professional team of officers and staff that is dedicated to the institution and the country. Those who have worked closely with the BSP — both from the private and the public sectors as well as other regulatory agencies — will attest to this.”
Under Mr. Tetangco’s watch, the central bank made the shift to an interest rate corridor scheme last June, introducing procedural cuts to the benchmark rates to 3% from 4% alongside weekly auctions of term deposits.
‘IF YOU DON’T RESIGN…’
A BSP governor also sits as chairman of the Monetary Board and heads the financial intelligence unit AMLC, and occupies ex-officio seats in various national government agencies and state-run corporations.
Yesterday, however, Mr. Duterte took the AMLC and the BSP to task anew for their supposed failure to cooperate in the government’s fight against graft and corruption.
“I’m going to charge all of you there criminally. I’ll count one to three, and if you don’t resign, I will treat you as a drug addict,” Mr. Duterte said in his speech during the ceremonial signing of the 2017 budget in Malacañan Palace.
“You know, you are contributing to the corruption of this country. You guys there are all corrupt. Bantay kayo sa akin (I will keep watching you all). I will bring you down.”
Sought for clarification after the event, Justice Secretary Vitaliano N. Aguirre II, without giving names, said Mr. Duterte was referring to three AMLC officials: the executive director, deputy director and the Compliance and Investigation Division chief.
“I’m sure he was referring to that. Kasi hanggang ngayon (Because until now they’re) stonewalling. Ni hindi pa binibigay ‘ yung may (They have not given us the) assessment [ reports], ‘ yung may analysis nung account (the ones with the analysis of accounts),” Mr. Aguirre said.
In November, Mr. Duterte warned AMLC against “protecting somebody, those who are really into money laundering.”
To recall, Mr. Aguirre said in September that he had difficulty securing the AMLC’s cooperation in the Justice department’s investigation on the money trail of the drugs trade at the national penitentiary.
At the center of the probe is Senator Leila M. de Lima, whom the Duterte government accuses of protecting and profiting from the illegal drugs trade. —
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