Will BDL vice governors resign after yesterday's 'discouraging' meeting?

The Central Bank’s four vice governors – Wassim Mansouri, Bashir Yakzan, Salim Chahine and Alexander Mouradian – might resign, a central Bank vice governor said.

The vice governor told al-Akhbar newspaper, in remarks published Friday, that the vice governors' meeting with the Parliament's Administration and Justice Committee was not "encouraging."

The vice governors had met on Tuesday and Thursday with the Administration and Justice Committee. They presented Thursday to the MPs a preliminary comprehensive financial plan.

"If we don't see a serious approach towards our proposals, our resignation would be the response," the vice governor told al-Akhbar.

The plan had "crippling" conditions according to some MPs, media reports said, adding that MPs are now leaning toward the appointment of a new governor or the extension of outgoing governor Riad Salameh's term, as they considered that the vice governors' plan needs legislations and described it as "unclear."

Lebanon since last year has been governed by a caretaker cabinet with limited powers and without a president, and naming a high official could take months of political horse-trading.

According to the constitution, Parliament cannot legislate before a president is elected, and opposition MPs have been boycotting all legislative sessions.

One of the vice governors' conditions is to stop the Sayrafa exchange platform and replace it with a "managed" floating exchange rate platform set up through international providers.

The central bank governor is named by cabinet decree for a six-year mandate that can be renewed multiple times, based on the finance minister's recommendation.

If the position is vacant, the law stipulates that the first vice-governor take over.

The vice governors had warned in early July that they would resign, but later backed down from the idea, saying the threat was intended to "alarm the political class and the people".

After Thursday's meeting, Mansouri said that no result was reached during the session and that next week, when the MPs will give their feedback, the vice governors will act accordingly.