Bank chiefs condemn `blatant misinformation’ in a confidential report, writes Madeleine Wackernagel
The Reserve Bank has hit back at accusations of racism, brought by Cosatu at last week’s bank collusion hearings and based on a confidential report by CS First Boston.
Says deputy governor, Dr Timothy Thahane: “I took up my appointment in April, some time after Mary Davis of CS First Boston visited this country and wrote her report, so I was not privy to any discussions she may have held with bank representatives.
“Her opinion that the bank is opposed to affirmative action is wrong; policies have been in place for some time, although implementation has lagged behind.”
The governor, Dr Chris Stals, has written to the president of the New York investment bank, condemning the report in the strongest terms: “I cannot but strongly object to this kind of blatant misinformation being distributed to potential investors in South Africa.
I was not in the country at the time of the visit of Ms Davis, but all my efforts to locate anybody in the Reserve Bank who may have granted her an interview failed.”
Attempts to contact Davis proved fruitless but her original report said: “They [the bank] are critical of affirmative action employment policies, even though blacks are utterly under-represented at the bank, on the grounds that not enough skilled blacks are available, although they have not implemented a training programme.”
Thahane was quick to refute this criticism: “There are three top black executives, plus myself, and others at a more junior level. We have a training programme — eight cadets have graduated from the two-year course, which entailed a period in each department. Of these, one has gone on to complete a doctorate, another has left. But the others are staying in permanent positions.
“When I joined the bank, my aim was to push ahead with affirmative action policies and that’s exactly what I’m doing. In terms of the bank’s written policy, there was little I could add, but implementation has not been as rapid as hoped. We are moving to change all that, and by this stage next year we will be in a position to report concrete progress.”
The appointment of Thahane was seen as a step in the right direction by disgruntled bank staff, but the process has been too slow to counter all complaints, says an insider.
Says Thahane: “Any change in an institution like ours is not easy and anxieties are understandable. But we have to make sure that we employ the best people to the best of their abilities.
“Basically, it is now a question of training, otherwise we run into problems of performance. But Dr Stals has assured me that there are no constraints on a budget for training and we are planning to link up with various other central banks, such as the Bank of England, to enhance our training programme.
“Top management has to give the affirmative action plan special attention. We now have a succession plan in place for all levels of management, and managers are responsible for ensuring that previously unrepresented groups are carefully considered. Any managers that don’t actively participate in meeting these objectives will be moved out.”
Stals was also quick to dispel the doubts cast by Davis on the bank’s loyalty to the government and the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP): “It is also just not true to say that `The bank is critical of the RDP and its goals’. Anybody who may have read through the many references I made to the RDP in public speeches … will know that the bank has never criticised the RDP and its objectives.”
But once the story of the confidential report had broken, Davis backtracked from her initial tough stance towards the bank. She was quoted as saying: “I believe the Reserve Bank has been acting in the best interests of the economy at all times … It is absolutely and utterly crucial that the bank have the freedom to operate independently.”