AS THE Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) celebrates its 50-year anniversary, senior staff have moved to promote a more positive and open image of the bank to the community.Wagga-born assistant governor at the RBA, Philip Lowe, said historically the central bank has been seen as quite secretive, which is something its governor was keen to address.“I think (the governor, Glenn Stevens) thought it would be important to remind the community this is what we’re doing and we’re not some secretive group of people sitting away and only looking at our computers and statistics,” Dr Lowe told The Daily Advertiser.As head of the economics department at the bank, Dr Lowe is charged with the task of passing on his recommendations on interest rates to the board before it makes the final call.He said he recognises the responsibility of his decisions and therefore the need to be accountable and transparent to the wider community.However, Dr Lowe said ultimately the RBA has to do what is in the nation’s best interest and cannot be timid when deciding interest rates.“We’re never going to win popularity contests, and we’re not in that game,” he said.The bank saw a drop in public sentiment after raising the interest rate six times between October last year and May this year as families already struggling to make it through the economic downturn were affected.Despite this, Dr Lowe said the bank never felt pressured by interest groups to lower the interest rates.“(People) see the bank as an independent voice that is prepared to speak its mind,” he said.This was evident in the lead-up to the 2007 federal election, and the RBA’s persistent rises that pushed the rate to 6.75 per cent and were seen by many as the main contributor to the ousting of the Howard government.Yet, far from thinking there is still adverse sentiment over the RBA’s influence on the economy and in particular, family mortgage repayments, Dr Lowe said he felt the general community supported the bank.■ See tomorrow’s Weekend Advertiser for an exclusive in-depth feature story on Dr Philip Lowe’s career and family and his time growing up in Wagga.