IMF clash ‘not good’

Winston Cox. (FP)

By Tony Best | Sat, January 05, 2013 - 12:06 AM

Former Governor of the Central Bank of Barbados, Winston Cox, isn’t happy with Governor Dr DeLisle Worrell’s recent clash with managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Legarde, in Washington D.C.

“I wouldn’t have done it,” said Cox, who headed the bank in the 1990s.

He indicated it was not what the Central Bank Governor said when he debated the issue with Legarde, a former minister of finance of France, about the fund’s economic policies in Barbados and the rest of the developing world but the circumstances that led to the heated exchange.

Cox said that the “protocol” of such World Bank/IMF meetings required that the ministers of finance speak at such sessions while their advisers defer to them when time came to make official statements.

“I would have allowed the minister (Chris Sincker) to take the floor,” said Cox. “The protocol suggested that would have been the way to go.”

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Posted by Tony Waterman 4 months, 2 weeks ago: I am Sorry Mr.Cox, but every time someone like you open your mouth and tell us how to be on our knees to some ""international"" Lackeys because they are from some far off white Lands, you make Robert Mugabe look more appealing to me, and really!!! i dont like the Man that much, I think that Dr.Delisle Worrwll as Gov.of OUR CENTRAL BANK and as HIGHLY EDUCATED a person as Christine LeGarde, was right to let her know that he had an opinion which was different from that of the International Murderous FUND (IMF), the Organisation that seems to be out to kill all our Small Black Economies, and keep us Subjugated. but i guess that you are as white as they are NOW. Thank you Dr.Worrell fro Standing up for Barbados, what would Mr.Cox have said to Lloyd Sandiford Back in the Day when he stood up to them also???

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Posted by SANDREA BUTCHER 4 months, 2 weeks ago: Protocol is protocol! If the Governor of the Central bank of Barbados was wrong, he was wrong. He had the right to confer his stance to our Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs who would have put forward the stance since he is an educated person. If I have a problem with the budget I can't just waltz into parliament and state my case. There is a time and place for everything. Mr Cox is right.

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Posted by J. Payne 4 months, 2 weeks ago: @TONY WATERMAN. And every-time persons like yourself pat such behaviour proverbially on the back, it makes Robert Mugabe look as though he has company. If the ruling party borrowed the people's money, it ment they get to call the shots until the money is paid back. Do you think Argentina which is n-times larger than Barbados, and has a population of 41+ million people didn't try to resist the IMF? Copy and paste the following: ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentine_debt_restructuring )

What country in distress has ever praised or, placed the IMF and its orthodoxy in line for praise? The writing was on the wall. Barbados kicked the IMF outta here in the 1990s. This party wanted to make a rookie mistake of jumping into bed with them, and not just doing light-business, but setting up like they're hitching their entire oxcart to the IMF. They borrowed and spent like there was no tomorrow. I can't wait for general elections. Bees gon show wunna again. Stand by.

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Posted by Simon Templar 4 months, 2 weeks ago: The issue isn't about what was said. It was about who said it. The Min. of Finance should have been the one doing the talking since the meeting was a council of ministers. The governor was there in his capacity as an advisor to the minister.

Finally, Lloyd Sandiford stood up to the IMF to the extent that there was an austerity programme which caused an 8% cut in public sector wages, a real decline in real wages of 10%, 3000 sent home from the public sector, while overall unemployment rose to about 25%. One wonders what would have happened if he didn't stand up to the IMF (SMH).

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Posted by SANDREA BUTCHER 4 months, 2 weeks ago: @Tony Waterman, do you feel that this is only a white and black issue. Greece, Italy and other 'white lands' are stuck between a rock and a hard place. Read the international news, man. Poor people feeling the burn whether they are white, black or yellow; big or small.
Anyway, maybe the Governor of the Central Bank of Barbados has a ministerial portfolio for Finance and Economic Affairs and some of us just don't know.

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Posted by Frank Husbands 4 months, 2 weeks ago: Barbados may need to change the side they now have playing on the present economic wicket.The time is coming soon that the minister of finance and the Central Bank Governor will all be subject to the people’s bowling to decide if they are the team Barbados will choose again to play the economic visitors.
I personally think the Bees have experience batting on a good wicket. They always seem to lose power after the pitch turns bad and regain power when the pitch is better.We however are in extended play with no signs of the pitch getting better anytime soon.I really don't know if we should send them into bat at this time.Then again I don't think they could do any worst than the present "11".
America has been placed on notice by Moodys that they may lose another notch off they Stellar rating which has been downgraded. I don't see Owen out there in the middle playing very well the spin and Yorkas from these agencies.
Jamaica seems to be have been LBW. Trinidad having played on this present sticky economic wicket many years prior and having the oil man scoring a ton of runs seem not to be bothered by the present bowling.Guyana interestingly enough getting the bowling played on this wicket.All Barbados seems to be doing is poking and staying in the middle and hoping for a star batsman to come to the crease to score some much needed runs.

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Posted by Tony Waterman 4 months, 2 weeks ago: @SANDREA BUTCHER ,y J. Payne , Simon Templar!!!!You all are coming down hard on Dr.Worrell when it was a Joint Caribbean Group meeting with the IMF and the World Bank, but Forgotten in the hullabaloo is the fact that Governor Worrell presented to the two international financial bodies a paper which is worthy of national, regioanl and international discussion titled, ""Policies for Stabilization and Growth in Small Very Open Economies.""
THE EVIL THAT MEN DO LIVES AFTER THEM, THE GOOD IF OFTEN INTERRED WITH THEIR BONES, SO LET IT BE WITH DELISLE.
i think he is better off amongst his ENEMIES