Kwaśniewski and Balcerowicz agree the RPP must remain above politics

During the ceremony, President Aleksander Kwaśniewski said he hoped the new Council would continue the achievements of the old one, and also argued that the Central Bank must remain independent. The President of the National Bank of Poland (NBP) Leszek Balcerowicz said that the greatest achievement of the outgoing Monetary Policy Council (RPP) has been keeping the level of inflation and the current account low. At the same time, he added that an ideal candidate for the Council, "Has to have a character and remain uninfluenced by external pressures". Balcerowicz reminded that, at the beginning of RPP's tenure in 1998, inflation stood at over 14% whereas now it has been reduced to less than 2%. (Parkiet, p. 1) A.Z.