Georgetown, GINA, September 19, 2013 – Presidential Advisor on Governance Gail Teixeira reported today that Cabinet has been brought up to speed by Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall about the most recent development, subsequent to Guyana’s presentation to the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) of the August 26 report.
Georgetown, GINA, September 19, 2013 – Presidential Advisor on Governance Gail Teixeira reported today that Cabinet has been brought up to speed by Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall about the most recent development, subsequent to Guyana’s presentation to the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) of the August 26 report.
Teixeira stated that AG Nandlall disclosed that the CFATF had deemed the Guyana report he had submitted as incomplete. “That incomplete designation was due to Guyana’s inability to provide CFATF with the definitive date for which the amended Anti Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Bill (AMLCFT) will be enacted by the 10th Parliament of Guyana,” she explained.
Teixeira added that despite being apprised of the current situation regarding the Parliamentary Select Committee on the AMLCFT Amendment Bill, CFATF still insisted on a definitive date of enactment by the time they meet again in November.
Speaking during a post-Cabinet media briefing, Teixeira, who was standing in for Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr. Roger Luncheon, stated that she continues to be cautiously optimistic, and that after the Parliamentary recess, the PPP’s Chief Whip and chairperson of the Parliamentary Select Committee said she will be calling a meeting on the issue.
“I’m always hopeful that the other side will see the righteousness of proceeding on this matter, but we will have to as the old people say test the pudding… so that when recess comes to an end, as Chairperson of the Committee I will be convening a meeting as quickly as possible so that we can get back to the business of looking at the draft report, the amendments that the committee did work with, to see if we can reach agreement … so I’m, cautiously optimistic,” she stated.
She pointed out that the recent past behaviour of the opposition, in Parliament in general, “and specifically with regards to the AMLCFT legislation does not augur well for the future.”
Teixeira pointed out however, that in the meantime, “CFATF noted favourably the non legislative interventions by the administration, and urged further progress so that although we were given an incomplete status in relation to recommendations relating to Legislative instruments, that they noted with some satisfaction that Guyana was making progress in the non legislative interventions which were about 20% of the recommendations under CFATF.”
Thus far, supervisory authorities have been appointed to scrutinise the conduct of all agencies which fall under the scope of the money laundering legislation in Guyana.
Guidelines have been drafted with assistance from experts provided by the Canadian Government which will regulate how these agencies and their officers are to discharge their daily functions and statutory responsibilities. Also, government is moving apace to ensure that Guyana’s obligations under certain treaties indentified by CFATF are discharged for example the Vienna and Palermo conventions, the AG had earlier noted.
A workshop was arranged by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in conjunction with the British High Commission where an expert on money laundering presented a manual on the confiscation of property suspected to be the proceeds of money laundering. This workshop was attended by prosecutors in the DPP’s chambers as well as in the police force.
With respect to CFATF’s recommendation that a special unit on organised crime be set up, Government is currently in the process of creating such a unit within the Guyana Police Force.
Another recommendation which is being implemented at the governmental level is the establishment of a national joint action task force to observe the enforcement of the money laundering legislation. This unit brings together under a singular umbrella several important state agencies including the Office of the President, the AG, the Ministers of Home Affairs and Finance, the DPP, Bank of Guyana, Guyana Revenue Authority, GPF and Customs Anti Narcotics Unit (CANU).
The AMLCFT Bill has been in the hands of the Opposition for several months and had benefited from detailed scrutiny in the Special Select Committee that had met nearly 15 times starting from May 8.
Attorney General Nandlall and delegation had in May, 2013, travelled to Nicaragua and attended a meeting organised by CFATF, where Guyana was to have undergone an evaluation of the country’s ability to effectively counter money laundering and financing of terrorism.
Prior to the meeting, Guyana and other Caribbean countries had been given recommendations to execute, among which were certain legislative amendments. The AMLCFT Bill was subsequently crafted, encapsulating all the suggested amendments and laid in the National Assembly.
The Opposition was fully briefed on the recommendations, and the diplomatic community organised a forum which was attended by all the political parties. There presentations were made; and discussions were held updating all present in respect of the recommendations which have to be implemented, and the consequences which are likely to flow if these recommendations were not implemented.
After the Bill was sent to the Select Committee, the Opposition asked for more documents, and all were supplied. Then they asked for meetings to be adjourned to longer periods, and this was complied with as well. Then came the request for stakeholders to be invited to make submissions to the committee, and again the Government complied.
During the final meeting of the Committee when the Bill should have been approved and returned to the House, the Opposition Committee Members rejected it. The Bill will now be addressed after the Parliament comes out of recess.
If Guyana is found to be non-compliant at the November meeting of CFATF, then it will be declared such a member, and if that happens, then it will be placed on a list of delinquent countries, and countries, international financial institutions and businesses worldwide would be invited to impose whatever sanctions they deem fit upon Guyana and businesses operating in Guyana, and financial transactions emanating from Guyana.
