Miroslav Singer, CNB Board Member
Prague Castle
Prague, 18th June 2010
Dear Mr President, ladies and gentlemen,
It is a great pleasure for me to be able to address you on this occasion. First of all, let me thank you for your confidence and for giving me the mandate for such a position. I will try not to fall short of this confidence.
I personally perceive this event as a manifestation of the fact that my work in the bank during the past five and half years has been good. I am extremely pleased, among other things, because I am convinced – thanks to my parents – that one should either do things well or not at all.
Moving from a personal level to a more general one, when I saw last Saturday the huge queue of people who had come on that very hot day to see what the interior of the central bank looks like and the place there where decisions are taken, I realised what an interest Czech citizens have in their central bank. I think, however, that this is no coincidence. This is a manifestation of the fact that there are enough people in our country who realise that they are able to ensure their standard of living and their satisfaction with it only through their initiative, hard work and savings, which transform into investment. And I believe that we have now been reminded that this is a very positive asset.
The Czech National Bank is responsible for not disappointing their confidence in this asset and should ensure that their confidence is not undermined by price instability or the instability of the institutions which hold their savings. Our citizens have kept their heads and their confidence even during the most stressful moments of the current economic shocks which we are going through. And this has protected them from the negative consequences of the opposite situation which many economies, including many European economies, are experiencing.
This confidence has surely not been gained by chance. I must say that this has largely been achieved thanks to my colleagues, whom I have met during five and half years at the Czech National Bank. I am convinced that this is due to a great extent to the personality, activity and work of governor Zdeněk Tůma.
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I accept the mandate of governor being aware of the fact that the turbulence and shocks in the financial markets have not yet subsided. Dramatic changes to the architecture of the financial system in the world and in Europe are under preparation, which are not necessarily always beneficial to our country. And I am ready to do my best during my term in office as governor to ensure that the Czech National Bank is able to fulfil its role of the guarantor of the strength of the Czech financial system and particularly the stability of the savings of Czech citizens.
Thank you.