Algeria’s President, Abdelaziz Bouteflika, has fired the governor of the central bank Mohamed Laksaci who for months now was criticized for its management of Algeria’s public finances amid falling oil price.

Laksaci’s dismissal was announced by official Algerian sources after a council of ministers held on May 31.

Heading the Central Bank since 2001, the former governor was replaced by Mohamed Loukal, actual CEO of Algeria’s External Bank (BEA), one of Algeria’s main public banks.

Mohamed Laksaci was on the hot seat for some time now as heads of the Front de Libération Nationale (FLN, Presidential party) openly blamed him of being in part responsible for the degradation of the country’s economic situation.

“He occupied this position so long, yet he did nothing. He just repeated the same program each year. He is in part responsible for the development of the parallel currency market at Square Port Said and elsewhere and also for the degradation of Algeria’s economic situation,” said Amar Saâdani, FLN secretary general, in March.

Falling oil prices cut Algeria’s public revenues and decreased its foreign currency reserves from $35 billion in 2015, to $143 billion at December 31 the same year. The slump in oil export revenues has also led to a deficit in the trade balance and caused Algeria’s currency, the dinar, to weaken significantly to strong currencies.