Anti- Money Laundering Amendment Bill…The PPP is solely responsible for the impeding blacklisting of Guyana – AFC
The opposition Alliance For Change (AFC) believes that a potential crisis over the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Amendment Bill can be averted once President Donald Ramotar complies with the constitutional obligations and establish the Public Procurement Commission and assent to the bills presented to him by the National Assembly.
The AFC in statement issued late yesterday evening said that it has noted that the Private Sector Commission [PSC] and the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce & Industry’s (GCCI) position on the amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (Amendment) Bill.
The two bodies have called for good sense to prevail to prevent Guyana from facing international sanction for failing to implement the legislation.
The AFC said that it is as deeply concerned as the PSC, the GCCI and other organisations about the potential blacklisting of Guyana.
However, the party said that this concern is overshadowed by the Government’s repeated opposition to the establishment of constitutionally mandated organs like the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) coupled with President Ramotar’s promised and delivered obstruction to the legislative agenda of the majority of its citizens.
“The lack of enthusiasm to repeated calls for good governance, greater transparency and a commitment to greater overview of the use of taxpayers’ money by the Executive, long ago brought this nation to crisis status, and to permit the continued degradation of and crisis in governance of this country is simply unacceptable and irresponsible,” the AFC said.
The AFC repeated its disappointment at the urgency which some sectors of the country have recently found to express their concern about the detrimental effects on the nation state, and notes the absence of similar intensity and concern about the establishment of mandatory constitutional bodies and assumption of judicial office by his Excellency when he pronounced on the legality of the “opposition bills”.
“The PPP failed to establish the Public Procurement Commission in the 9th Parliament and seems unwilling to establish it in the current 10th parliament. This is unacceptable and the AFC demands that the PPP submit the names of their nominees to the Commission, as an act of good faith to energize any alternative AFC position on this Money Laundering Bill.”
The AFC is reminding that the Government was fully aware since May 2011 that the Money Laundering Amendments were required when the Mutual Evaluation Report [MER] on Guyana was adopted by the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force [CFATF].
Unfortunately, the AFC said, since then, Guyana was placed on the “expedited follow-up list”, which required that they report on the progress they have made in implementing the recommendations of the MER at every plenary session of CFATF.
Since May 2011, Guyana was cited on three occasions for minimal progress.
“So why this emergency now when our Ministers of Government spent many hours in the studios of NCN engaging in nasty political propaganda rather than at their desk doing the Government’s work? The facts remain it is the PPP Ministers who are solely responsible for the impeding black-listing of Guyana and not the AFC.”
The AFC is of the view that one of the best method of stamping out money laundering is to turn off the taps on the “illicit proceeds” which come from many sources.
One of these sources, it said, is the illicit funds associated with contracts awarded to friends at amounts several times the real market value.
According to the AFC, if the Public Procurement Commission is established, it will go a far way in weeding out these illegally earned funds thus contributing to less money being laundered.
“The AFC wishes to reiterate its position that it continues to support comprehensive financial reforms in Guyana; as we believe that money laundering is a scourge to be eliminated. We will continue to support any national effort at removing the comingling of the proceeds of crime with the income of hard working citizens of the Republic.”
