The Forbidden Word: “DEVALUATION!”

The last time I travelled abroad before this week was towards the end of May this year, 29th May, 2007 to be precise. As always I joined the queue at the Barclays Bank in Victoria for my overseas travel allowance of four hundred US dollars ($400) as prescribed by the Government of President James Michel, former Minister of Finance, under whose reign the foreign exchange control act came into being, for those in the SPPF with failing memory. It cost me Rs 2,554.94 cts, commission included, to purchase the US $ 400 then.   

This week, Wednesday, 10th October, 2007, I queued up at the very same spot in the very same bank in Victoria to purchase the very same amount of dollars, US $400, guess what! I had to pay an extra R 790.37cts to purchase the dollars. In only six months I’ve had to pay an extra R 790.37cts to obtain the same amount of foreign exchange I did in May, 2007. It cost me Rs 3345.31c to buy my overseas travel allowance this time around. This is without a doubt further proof that the Seychelles Rupee has lost considerable value even against the weakest amongst the major foreign currencies. Whilst queuing at the bank I couldn’t help noticed on the electronic board that the European euro is now at a record high selling at over eleven rupees, Rs 11.5568 to be exact and the British pound has firmly established itself at Rs 16.6734c. This is a remarkable seven rupees (Rs 7.00) extra for a pound from what it was in January this year, an incredible 80% devaluation of the Seychelles Rupee against the British Pound.

In the last  few months President Michel, Danny Faure and others, notably absent nowadays from television appearances is the Governor of the Central Bank, apart from making an appearance last weekend Francis Chang-Leng has kept away from the box, which he loved so very much not too long ago. Chang-Leng is the man who introduced the “Basket of currencies” according to his own admission. The ones who have not been able to avoid regular appearances before the television cameras have chosen carefully their adjectives in describing the harsh realities of the local economy, especially our monetary system. They have repeatedly used words like “adjustment” , “competitive” and “realignment” to describe the devaluation of the local currency. Mr. Chang Leng, like Mr. Mayadas you are not listening to Bob Marley “You can fool some people – some of the time……………!” “Devaluation” it seems is now the forbidden word or indeed completely absent from the vocabulary of President Michel, Minister of Finance Danny Faure, Chang-Leng and all those who are choosing to lie to the population in keeping their well paid jobs.

President Michel has demonstrated through all these farcical appearances on our television screens that he is not a brave political leader. He has chosen to hide behind words of convenience instead of addressing the issue of devaluation straight-on by being honest to the people who voted for him in the 2006 Presidential election. “Judge me by my actions”, these words I hope does come back to haunt President Michel! -

(Contributed)