Morgangate and Vincent Beache’s promise
The NCBâs legal action against Desmond Morgan and the consequent judgment in its favour predictably became another over-charged atom in our continuing nuclei-political fission, which seems to derive its destructive energy from any and everything. Again, reason is muscled aside as jostling for position -in an election race already in frenetic momentum, even though the starting gun is yet to be fired -, takes pre-eminence. Grâce à this diabolical political war, state ownership is made a monstrous villain, and a plague to NCB, so the prescription is serving up the victim as more meat and drink to the haves.{{more}} But state ownership in itself is not the problem, for is it neither the infirmity nor a symptom therefore. Anyone following news knows the world banking system recently suffered a paralysing crisis. 100% of the resulting insolvent banks were privately owned. Dutifully, governments using taxpayersâ money became salvagers, while the Ananiases and Sapphiras (called CEOs) received Alli Babaâs caves amount of treasures as parting handshakes.
Maddoff and Stanford are living proofs that private ownership is no immunity to the virus causing the problem. And in all cases, the penny savers are the first, sometimes only casualties. Yes, you are right, Stanford was only at our doorsteps. Ah, but do you remember Nano, the chief chef of the NDPâs âKitchen Cabinet?â Yes, the bank proprietor forced into a hurried exit with Uncle Sam in hot pursuit, but not before accusing Arhnim, James et al of benefiting from his corrupt wheeling and dealing.
Politicians are fully aware that NCB cannot be reduced to being just a bank. But vilifying state ownership in this political climate is good âgandaâ that wins applause from the simpleminded, while the real culprit, official corruption, remains on the loose. The nation is being convinced through deception to surrender another major national asset. SVG with no central bank at its full and singular command employs NCB as an instrument of governmentsâ development policy, something Ralph masters. The 100% mortgage for home building granted to civil servants is a central column on which housing development stands, with credit increase and more money circulating being but two of the many resulting economic chain effects. Government guaranteed loans from the bank for students to pursue university studies supports our education revolution and the broadening of the national cadre and intelligentsia. And, the banana industry might have entered âbone yardâ prematurely, were it not for the NCB periodically granted overdrafts.
These are but three examples showing how a state-owned NCB plays crucial roles in the realisation of overall economic and development policy. Of course, it can be argued that this could be done through a privately owned bank. The difference, however, is that a state-owned and operated bank must see the effective servicing of national interest as the main pathway to making profits. Private greed dictates grabbing, public service demands giving. Secondly, it would not have been that easy if not impossible for governments to secure the support of a private bank for these crucial development policies. Sure the politicians always have NCB on a trapeze and roller coaster one and the same time. But the bank has proven good at the balancing act and always rises after every fall. Yet, it is argued that this jewel that sponsored governmentsâ inventions in crucial areas of our socio-economic development for a generation will now turn to brass unless the state relinquishes ownership.
Then again, locally operating privately owned banks are rather tight-fisted in lending for entrepreneurial purposes, particularly for small business enterprises. An attitude they show no willingness to change even while drowning in liquidity. And one must not forget their colour criterion, for even into the 80âs black people hoping to going in business were not welcomed clients. (Little wonder the richest people in SVG are generally still those with insufficient melanin. This aversion to darker pigmentation was and is expressed even in those banksâ employment policy. But thatâs for another chapter). âDown toâ Arhnim realised the need for predictable financing in these areas, thatâs why, with the help of Rudy Matthias inter alios he created a development bank, albeit under capitalised.
So governments in the absence of a national central bank have used the NCB as an instrument of and for national development. This was possible primarily because of governmentsâ leverage over the bank. This leverage has always been subject to abuse but is now wrongly persecuted as the source of the problem. Truth be told, this confusion is a politico-ideological construct designed to gain mileage. But the problem remains official corruption, which unless treated would just move from victim to victim. NCB today, NIS or some other public entity tomorrow! Removing victims and treating symptoms are but plasters on a cancer. This malignant disease needs resolute and determined continuous treatment, the kind heralded by Vincent Beache, but only heralded.
It was Vincent who promised there would be integrity legislation within the 1st 100 days of a ULP administration. I applauded him for I imagined that this law would include things like an independent integrity commission and serious fines and marathon jail terms for the leech like kleptomaniacs who are so adept at this deliberate and self-serving private misappropriation of public funds. This promise was made inter alia because under the NDP, NCB had been mortally and morally wounded by corruption, the symptoms manifesting in Adamusgate, Rollagate, well⦠all John, Peter, Mary and Martha had their gates. The situation was anaemic! Amazingly, NCB haemorrhaging from the jugular for 17 years did not give up the ghost. So Vincentâs rhetoric promised a welcome departure. What we saw instead is NCB going to the courts to avoid a possible Morgangate. Vincent gained political mileage, for him it was probably simply politics, but SVGâs battle against official corruption is yet to begin in earnest.
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