President lambastes Central Bank officials; warns them not to shirk their responsibility

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa severely reprimanded senior officials of the Central Bank for failing to put forward a 'single proposal to rebuild the economy'.

 

In a meeting with Central bank officials last evening, president Rajapaksa has asserted they cannot let the COVID-19 health crisis develop into an economic crisis. The President said that many tools have been introduced by the Central Banks in the countries around the world but Sri Lanka has not received such a positive response from its central bank.

 "The Central Bank and the Treasury are entrusted with the responsibility of formulating right monetary and fiscal policies that are instrumental in economic revival. Many tools have been introduced by the Central Banks in the countries around the world. We have not received such a positive response from our Central Bank. Let me know the measures that need to be taken to confront the crisis without delay," he said.

"Monetary and Fiscal Policy has been formulated by the Central Bank. That should be done in accordance with the economic policy of the President of the country," Rajapaksa said

 

His comments came as Sri Lanka has been witnessing slowdown in economic growth even before the COVID-19 crisis while the debt liability has risen putting the currency under pressure.

He said that the Federal Reserve in the US has formulated a USD 600 billion programme. while the Central Banks in Australia and Japan too have joined with similar programmes to help revive their respective economies.

Look at this headline. “The AFED (Arab Forum for Environment and Development) commits to use a full range of tools to help the economy through unprecedented time”. What is the tool we have used? We have used nothing," president Rajapaksa said.