August coming will be three years since the conservatorship of Anguilla’s two local banks by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank. Despite the disquiet among some factions of the citizenry, there has been some significant progress since then. We have seen the formal establishment of the National Commercial Bank of Anguilla (NCBA) with the disappearance of NBA and CCB – just a matter of eight weeks ago, on April 25. The new Bank appeared following the enactment of the relevant governance and corporate legislation – and the setting up of the necessary operational and management systems. Of course, while all of this has provided a welcome breath of fresh air and hope, there are still some significant unsettled business and challenges to address, circumvent, and permanently resolve. The issue of staffing is certainly one of those concerns, but the hope is that this will be approached and dealt with in the best possible caring manner. The offshore banking situation is another issue and again it is hoped that this, too, will eventually be satisfactorily addressed.
By all appearance, it continues to be business as usual at the new Bank with customers easily conducting their daily multiple transactions at what is in fact their National Bank, operated by the Government of Anguilla. One of the major guarantees given to them is that their saving deposits are safeguarded and this, of necessity, must give them a high degree of confidence and reason to support the Bank. No one can deny that the loss of shares has not been an unfortunate issue for many, or that the cost to save the local banks, through NCBA, has not impinged heavily on our national budget – and increased its supporting taxes – but sacrifice is never easy and the price of success is never cheap. Vince Lombardi put it this way: The price of success is hard work, dedicated to the job at hand that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand. Of course, drawing on our resilience, we expect to win big with our new Bank. Paul Bryant said: If you believe in yourself and have the dedication and pride – and never quit, you will be a winner. However personal these quotes may be, we can apply them to any circumstance at the national level as well, and the banking sector fits that circumstance.
What is now needed is for all of our people to settle down and unite behind the success not only of NCBA, but Anguilla on a whole. Ours is a small developing island seeking a comfortable niche in a difficult world society fraught with problems of every description, and it behoves us to valiantly and patriotically rise to the occasion. Fortunately for us, we are not alone in our compromised banking sector and in the urgent need to build economic and financial resilience to move our beloved island forward.
It is a source of encouragement that the World Bank, the IMF, the Caribbean Development Bank and, perhaps even more so, the UK Government, have been keeping, and continue to keep, a watchful eye on our banking sector. In fact, they helped to guide us along the path our Government has taken. Given the strict, and sometimes, overly supervision, that the UK Government has exercised on our Government’s handling of the banking situation from day one, we could never have reached this far in finding a solution if there was not some overriding merit and confidence in the way we have handled the problem thus far. It is also an encouragement that the UK Government has undertaken to provide Anguilla with financing for infrastructure and marine projects with further guarantees of assistance, and that many investors are now knocking on our doors offering various forms of economic development. This gives us hope for economic and financial recovery in Anguilla and assures us that our banking sector – an important element in the scheme of things – is on a course to recover as well.
While dissent is part of the democratic process, and should never be stifled, there is an urgent need for a cessation of the bickering, loose talk and negativity we are experiencing in our community. Media houses are always the guardians of free speech and public discourse in its many forms, but the press must be responsible and must police itself in the national interest. When Keith (Stone) Greaves abruptly ended his interactive programme on the Government’s radio station, ostensibly because of the direction it was taking, that was a responsible example of a media house policing itself before matters spin out of control. Will those sometimes disgusting and irresponsible radio talk shows, some people openly complain about, ever come to this realisation in the national interest? There is a crying need for all forces to be on board in a national effort and resolve to allow Anguilla, our country, to go forward. Will you join in that noble cause?
