When there is silence or a dearth of information, people tend to come up with their own answers and misinformation tends to thrive.
We make this observation as the country awaits the appointment of a new Governor of the Central Bank of Barbados, as the curtain came down on the leadership of Governor Cleviston Haynes on Tuesday.
There seemed something odd, however, about his departure from such an important office in the country, given the numerous economic challenges the island has waded through and continues to confront.
Over the past days, social media was awash with videos and comments about who was likely to fill the position of Governor, an office that has been held by the most esteemed of the Barbados economic landscape and study.
The fact that citizens had no idea who would succeed Mr. Haynes added further fuel to the information vacuum. There was discourse on whether there should have been a gulf between the exit of Mr. Haynes and the appointment of a new man or woman at the helm.
In conversations about the service of Mr Haynes, they were marked by comments about his humble background, the fact that he gave over four decades of quality service to the institution, that his tenure as Governor was not tinged by party politics, and that his responses to interrogation from the media elicited confidence and he never appeared evasive.
The Governor was not a man known for flamboyance, but a steady, reasonable voice on issues related to the economy and certainly was not viewed as a public officer who went in search of the limelight.
It is unfortunate that it was Haynes who announced his own departure as if he were some ordinary civil servant going on pre-retirement leave. We have seen more fanfare at the exit of a long-serving custodian at a primary school than we have seen for the Governor’s years of service to the country.
Haynes, acted as Governor of the Central Bank for one year after a big blow up between then Governor Dr DeLisle Worrell and the Bank’s board of directors followed by his subsequent firing in February 2017. Mr Haynes took over the helm effective January 1, 2018. He was the seventh Governor of the Central Bank.
Barbadians place great respect in the holder of this office, with a proud record set by the first governor Dr Courtney Blackman and all his successors.
It was Blackman who reminded Barbadians that the Central Bank governor was “a creature of the Minister of Finance”, however, we have still come to expect that the holder of the office will not only be competent but that he or she will undertake the duties of the office with independence and honour.
Today, the public was informed of the appointment of an acting Central Bank governor which may serve to further heighten speculation about who the administration will eventually appoint to the post.
Nevertheless, the country welcomes the announcement of Alwyn Jordan as the new acting head of the bank. Mr. Jordan, who was appointed Deputy Governor in 2019, will fill the vacuum until the desired candidate is found.
Jordan, who thanked Haynes for his “steady hand” during his six-year tenure, announced that his immediate focus will be on “continuing the work of restoring Barbados’ economy and ensuring that the Bank remains a strong, resilient institution that is able to fulfil its mandate and serve the Barbadian public”.
We wish Mr Jordan and his team at the Central Bank success in their roles.
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