This is with reference to a letter of Waqar Hasan published in your esteemed daily on 18th October, 2005 under the caption: 'SBP Governor's speech'. I do not agree with Waqar Hasan's depiction and characterisation of the State Bank and its Governor.
As someone who has been dealing with the central bank for a long time, I must tell him that the State Bank under the dynamic leadership of its Governor has completely changed its culture. Traditionally, the central banks the world over had been conservative, but now they are becoming more open and transparent in their policies and programmes and emphasising better communication with the public at large who are benefited by these policies.
I think the Governor, like many of his colleagues elsewhere in the world, follows this new approach and actively interacts with the stakeholders and uses the media to present the rationale behind the policies adopted by the SBP, listen to the views of others and respond to the questions raised by them.
As a citizen of Pakistan I welcome this open approach and hope the new Governor will continue to pursue the same strategy. In this age, we expect our policy makers to be accountable to us for what they are doing.