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Anti-Money Laundering review likely this week – AG

Aug 04, 2013 News

By Latoya Giles
As the August 26 deadline draws near for Guyana to comply with the Caribbean Financial Action Taskforce (CFATF) recommendations to amend its Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Laws, Attorney General, Anil Nandlall, said that the Special Select Committee will likely conclude its work this week.
The Attorney General, in an invited comment yesterday, explained that after the work is completed, the revised Bill will be presented to the National Assembly along with a report from the committee.
However the Alliance for Change (AFC) is not so optimistic that the legislation will be supported since government has not fulfilled its promise of setting up a Public Procurement Commission.
Party Leader Khemraj Ramjattan, at a press conference on Friday last, said frankly, he does not believe that the Bill will be passed with the AFC’s support.
According to Ramjattan, the committee has benefitted from “new and quite weighty submissions” from the likes of the Director of Public Prosecutions and the Bank of Guyana, which have been taken into account.
“Even if they bring the report to Parliament, the AFC is maintaining that Government has to do something with the Procurement Commission, because it is tied to that,” Ramjattan stated.
He maintains that the government has to date done nothing to have the Procurement Commission “so nothing would pass.”
Last month, CFATF confirmed Guyana’s deadline for amending the legislation with respect to the amended Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Act.
Roger Hernandez, Financial Advisor of CFATF had told Kaieteur News that amendments to the legislation have to be passed in the National Assembly and enacted before August 26, so that it could be submitted and analysed.
He said that Guyana has to comply with the body’s requirements by November 2013 – the date assigned this year for follow-up review.
However, the Act and other documentation must be submitted prior to November.
Hernandez said that this was highlighted in a letter dated June 13, 2013, that was sent to the Director of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of Guyana’s Ministry of Finance.
According to the letter, Guyana has to submit a matrix of documentation, outlining what the country has done since the last plenary session in May last, copies of any legislation, regulations, or guidance notes that may have been enacted as part of action undertaken to comply with the Mutual Evaluation Report’s recommendations.
The letter also requested information on the size of the financial sector as at end of June 2013 or the date nearest and any technical assistance received, requested or obtained during the first half of 2013.
It further stated, “Responses to the Secretariat should be submitted by August 26, 2013. This deadline is necessary to facilitate a proper review of any changes to your matrix and the requisite review and update of the follow-up analysis report and translation to Spanish.”
Hernandez’s comments and the letter corroborated Government’s announcement that the deadline for the enactment of the amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism legislation is August 26.
In late May, Guyana was provided with a revised deadline for review in November 2013 after the National Assembly failed to pass key legislation before the initial May 27 evaluation meeting in Managua, Nicaragua.

 

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