Yesterday, in the eastern city of La Romana, President Hipolito Mejia reaffirmed his goal to lower the exchange rate to RD$30 to US$1. According to the Listin Diario, the President, while on the campaign trail, told reporters that he had shown patience in dealing with the elevated exchange rate, but has decided to stop “playing” with the problem. Mejia expressed confidence that the high-level commission that he appointed to check speculation and fraud in the exchange market would fulfill its duty, making sure the agreements reached on Tuesday with the banks and exchange houses are honored. The commission is headed by Armed Forces Minister General Jose Miguel Soto Jimenez and includes such figures as General Pedro de Jesus Candelier and the head of Internal Revenue, Quico Tabar, as members. Mejia emphasized that a reduction in the exchange rate would lower the cost of living for the neediest, citing that as one of his main concerns. In today’s La Informacion, from Santiago, the headlines read: “Government intervenes in exchange houses.” The report says that inspectors from the Superintendent of Banks and Internal Revenue entered several exchange houses to investigate alleged cases of hard currency deposits considered speculative in nature. According to Finance Minister Rafael Calderon, these are the cases that cause problems for the country. Calderon denied there was a process of militarizing the exchange process taking place.