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Anti-Money Laundering legislation…Govt.’s duplicity exposed at consultation – Harmon
If observers listen long enough to the various comments being made by government speakers on the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Bill, their duplicity would be exposed.
APNU’s Joseph Harmon
This notion was expressed yesterday by A Partnership for National Unity (APNU)’s Joseph Harmon, over a statement that President Donald Ramotar made during the recently held consultation at the International Conference Centre, over the non-passage of the Bill.
Ramotar was at the time responding to Private Sector Commission Chairman, Ronald Webster, who had called for the setting up of an Anti-Money Laundering Authority, similar to that employed by Barbados.
The Head of State said that he had heard that the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) was beginning to have difficulties with that (Barbados’) Authority.
That statement was proffered by the President, despite the fact that Minister of Legal Affairs and Attorney General, Anil Nandlall, had a few days earlier tabled counter amendments to those of APNU, calling for the setting up of an Authority.
Harmon yesterday also lambasted President Ramotar over various statements he would have made, calling them premature. According to the APNU parliamentarian, the matters being pronounced on publicly have not even come up as yet for discussion at the level of the select committee.
At present, only the first amendment draft by APNU has been considered by the Committee; there are two others to be deliberated on before the Government’s counter amendments would be dealt with.
Harmon described the Government’s amendments as modifications to APNU’s proposals.
He explained that APNU made some recommendations which the Chief Parliamentary Counsel (CPC) had to put into legislative language.
Harmon said that even before this was formally presented to the Committee, Government caused the CPC to draft its counter amendments.
The APNU executive did not rule out support for the Government amendments, saying that if consensus is found then they can be adopted.
“The work of the Committee is not over as yet,” Harmon stressed.
Ramotar, this past week, made public what the counter amendments were when he responded to a public plea by Dr Yesu Persaud.
The President indicated that he agreed to insulate the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) from any form of politicisation.
Ramotar said that with regard to the amendments proposed by APNU, “Government is prepared to compromise on these amendments and, indeed, we have laid in the Special Select Committee”.
He said that the counter-amendments proposed are designed and intended to address the major concerns raised by APNU in relation to strengthening the governance architecture of the FIU in the legislative regime, while at the same time insulating it from political influence and indeed any form of politicisation, in order to maintain its independence and functional autonomy.
President
Donald Ramotar
According to Ramotar, “our counter amendments provide for the establishment of an (Anti Money Laundering) Authority as contemplated by APNU.”
He said that the Anti-Money Laundering Authority shall comprise heads of Agencies that have a role and responsibility in relation to the combating of money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism.
According to Ramotar, “We propose that the Commissioner of Police, the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Governor of the Central Bank, the Commissioner General of the Guyana Revenue Authority, the Solicitor General, the Head of the Customs Anti Narcotics Unit (CANU), the Registrar of Deeds and Companies and a representative from the Private Sector Commission (PSC) in the area of banking and commerce, comprise this authority and are appointed by the Minister of Finance.”
Ramotar asserted that the counter proposal to that of APNU is that subjectivity and discretion are wholly removed from the appointment process and that almost all those persons are statutory office holders.
“I believe that this formulation addresses the conceptual concern of APNU in terms of strengthening the governance infrastructure in the law while at the same time removing the process from the realm of politics.”
As it relates to currency seizures, Ramotar maintains that the current law requires no change.
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