The President of the Republic, Kaïs Saïed visited the headquarters of the Central Bank of Tunisia (BCT), where he met with Governor Marouane El Abassi and the vice-governor, Nadia Gamha.
In his interview with the vice-governor, the President of the Republic insisted on the need to distinguish between the autonomy and independence of the BCT.
The Head of State emphasized the importance of the restructuring of the BCT, ensuring that certain directions were too many and had no reason to exist because they constituted a waste of public funds. “ There must be harmony between the different directions of the Central Bank, but also harmony with the laws of the State .”
Furthermore, he indicated that the old status of the BCT of 1958 was much better than the current status, on several points.
“ The autonomy of the Central Bank does not mean its independence from the State. There must be harmony with state policies. Autonomy is related to monetary policies, but this cannot be valid for the state budget,” indicates the head of state, recalling the provisions of article 25 of the 2016 BCT statute. In this context, he indicated that it was absurd for the State to resort to commercial banks to borrow and repay them with interest to the detriment of the citizens.
He added that the main role of the BCT was to control inflation, stressing, however, that it is necessary to improve and develop the legal texts so that the bank can fully play its role, as an institution. public, autonomous, but not independent of the State.
The President of the Republic also indicated that the Tunisian Commission for Financial Analyzes (Ctaf) is not carrying out its mission properly. “ I have already mentioned the volume of transactions carried out to the governorate of Sfax through the Tunisian Post Office. 33 billion millimeters during the period from January 1 to June 1. The Ctaf should have checked the origin of this money. We refuse money laundering in Tunisia. It is also necessary to check the funding received by certain associations which hide behind the cover of civil society, but which act contrary to the principles of civil society. Moreover, the concept of civil society must be reviewed .”
In this context, he added that these associations are, in appearance, part of civil society, but that is not really the case. “ A lot of money from abroad is injected into these associations, but it is then transferred to political parties. There has to be control over this money coming from abroad. We are an independent and sovereign state. We cannot allow this funding from the West or the East. Everything must be under the control of the State and the Ctaf. The Ctaf must hunt them down. These associations constitute a continuation of the political parties and the financing they receive comes from parties who seek to interfere in the internal affairs of Tunisia. What’s more, foreign financing of parties is prohibited. There must be legal proceedings. Every day I receive complaints about suspected corruption .”
The President of the Republic indicated that several parties took advantage of the Central Bank to hide corruption, even among those who say they are nostalgic for a certain era, notably in the 70s and 80s.
Furthermore, he returned to the question of the independence and autonomy of the BCT, evoking the notion of economic policy. “ As the philosopher Paul Ricoeur says: A society where economics dominate politics is a society that creates unbearable inequalities .” And he added that human beings cannot be reduced to simple numbers.
On the other hand, he indicated that certain experts, ” who are not in reality “, are going around the media to mislead public opinion through erroneous figures and claiming the immediate bankruptcy of the State. “ We have become the country of a million and a half experts. Their goal is to sow confusion and doubt. They want us to submit to the IMF, but we will not submit to the IMF and its dictates .”
Not being present when the president arrived, the governor of the Central Bank, Marouane El Abassi joined the meeting. The Head of State reiterated the question of financing the state budget by private commercial banks and the need for the intervention of the BCT.
“ There is also inflation that the BCT is trying to control. Unfortunately in Tunisia, the heart beats on the left while the wallet is on the right,” he says.
In this context, Marouane El Abassi indicated that the Central Bank has recently contributed to the financing of the State, adding that this option can be discussed. “ During this period in particular, the dealing with the government, and the Ministry of Finance has been wise. We must put the supreme interest of the state first ”.
The discussion then focused on the importance of investment and the need to put in place legal texts capable of reassuring investors and encouraging them.
The President of the Republic indicated that the impetus for investment must pass through the fight against corruption, which constitutes an obstacle to development.
He also reiterated the importance of the control and the role of the Ctaf, in particular, in the control of the financing of associations which represent a continuity of political parties, or even lobbies and cartels.
The meeting continued around technical issues and solutions capable of reducing the obstacles facing the development of the national economy.
The Governor of the Central Bank indicated that two bills have been submitted to the government, in particular that of the Exchange Code. He also tried to explain to the President of the Republic the importance of the ratings of international agencies, a principle always rejected by Kaïs Saïed.
