Yesterday’s out-of-court settlement of former Central Bank governor Dr Alvin Hilaire’s legal challenge to the revocation of his appointment has brought renewed attention to the tenure of the institution’s governors, six of whom served fewer than five years.
Since the Central Bank began operations in December 1964, 11 people have held the post of governor. Those who served fewer than five years were its first two governors, John F Pierce and Alexander Norman McLeod; Euric Bobb; William Demas; Jwala Rambarran and Hilaire.
The original Central Bank Act (1964) prescribed a five-year term for the governor. That remained the statutory requirement until an amendment in 2020 allowed appointments for periods of between three and five years. The distinction is important: serving fewer than five years does not, in every case, establish that a governor was removed before the end of the term to which he was appointed.
Pierce, an American, was involved in preparatory work for the establishment of the bank and served as governor for about 13 months before leaving in April 1966. His tenure was marked by tensions with the government and the Ministry of Finance, including disagreements surrounding the implementation of the Central Bank Act.
He was succeeded by Canadian Alexander Norman McLeod, who served from 1966 to 1969. McLeod experienced friction with the Dr Eric Williams administration over the role of monetary policy. The disagreement centred on whether the Central Bank should use monetary policy to support the government’s development objectives or focus on monetary stability, even where that might run counter to the administration’s plans.
Bobb, who served from 1984-1988, also had serious disagreements with the government. Differences over the bank’s role, exchange-rate policy and the handling of the country’s economic crisis became irreconcilable. Bobb resigned in 1987 and left office the following year.
Demas served from 1988-1992. Although his tenure was also shorter than five years, the historical record does not establish that he left because of a fundamental disagreement with the government.
The next major legal challenge involving a governor followed the dismissal of Rambarran in December 2015. Appointed in July 2012 for a five-year term, Rambarran was removed about two and a half years before that term was due to expire.
Rambarran was dismissed after he publicly identified the five largest users of foreign exchange by sector and disclosed the amounts they had used over the preceding three years at the Central Bank’s Monetary Policy Forum on December 4, 2015.
He also argued that T&T had entered a recession.
The High Court found his termination was unlawful and breached his constitutional rights.
The Court of Appeal upheld the finding on liability but reduced the damages award to approximately $3.42 million. The State’s appeal is due to be heard by the Privy Council in April 2027.
Hilaire succeeded Rambarran in December 2015, initially receiving a five-year appointment.
He was reappointed for three years in December 2020 and for a further three years in December 2023, with his final term due to end in December 2026.
His appointment was revoked on June 24, 2025, leaving about 18 months of that term unserved.
In the weeks before his removal, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar publicly accused Hilaire of refusing to provide information about the country’s largest users of foreign exchange.
At a post-Cabinet news conference in June 2025, she described attempts to obtain information from the Central Bank as being “like a bed of thorns or pulling teeth.” She said Hilaire had failed to provide information to the Auditor General in 2024 and again in 2025, and described the bank’s failure to provide information as a “blocker” to the Government’s efforts to investigate the foreign exchange market.
Rambarran and Hilaire are the two governors among the six who challenged their removals through legal proceedings.
