Finance Minister Trevor Manuel on Wednesday denied a conflict of interest could arise from the appointment of his partner, Maria Ramos, as the new Absa chief executive.

"The institution responsible for the regulation of banks in South Africa is the Registrar of Banks. It is not permissible for the minister of finance to involve himself with the interactions between the banks and the Registrar," Manuel wrote in a letter published in Sake-Beeld.

He was responding to a story in the business section of the Afrikaans daily earlier this week, which quoted economists Chris Hart and Ulrich Joubert. The two noted the possible conflict of interest Ramos' appointment created.

Manuel said it was "of course possible for any economist to speculate about all sorts of possibilities".

"Such opinions, which you quote in your reports, are of little value to me.
I would otherwise have hoped that the integrity Ramos and I had maintained in our different portfolios in the public sector, would have carried more weight than the so-called informed wishful thinking from economists such as Chris Hart and Ulrich Joubert," Manuel wrote.

Sake-Beeld, quoting Hart and Joubert, earlier reported that Ramos' appointment had once again raised the question of Manuel's future position.

According to the report it was "highly unlikely" that Manuel would remain finance minister when Ramos assumed her post on March 1.

This was "because the conflict of interest between the two positions is so great that it is unthinkable that they can be occupied by two life partners".

But Manuel said: "The assumption that it is 'highly unlikely' that I will still be in this portfolio by March 1, 2009 is speculative, not based on fact, and within our current context of economic uncertainty, extremely irresponsible.
"I do not have any intention to resign before a new executive power has been appointed by a new president after free and democratic elections."

Towards the end of the letter, Manuel wrote: "I want to repeat that it is not desirable that Cabinet positions be lifelong appointments and, as with all big decisions, it is preferable to leave voluntarily rather than to be pushed out."

Shortly after her appointment was announced, Ramos also denied a possible conflict of interest.

"I'm a professional person and I can't pretend that the minister of finance is not my life partner.
"But as a professional I live my life in a professional manner, with  integrity, and therefore it is possible for me to distinguish between my private and professional life," said Ramos.