The impasse on the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (Amendment) (AML/CFT) Bill continued on Wednesday as parliamentarians yet again fail to reach a consensus on the vital legislation which would avoid the blackening of the country’s image internationally.
According to Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall, the Chief Parliamentary Counsel (CPC) Cecil Dhurjon has failed to complete the draft for the proposed amendments from the opposition parties.
Dhurjon told the members that he was having some difficulty drafting the amendments for the bill because the amendments proposed are conflicting with the Principal Act of 2009.
According to Nandlall, the meeting on Wednesday came to an abrupt end after members of the AML/CFT Special Select Committee failed to reach consensus regarding the meeting’s agenda.
He said too that the committee was unable to consider seven sets of minutes from previous meetings, and pointed out that the amendment to increase the seizure of cash and jewellery in excess of Gy$10 million suspected to be proceeds of money laundering may have to be revised to be compliant with the law and Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) guidelines.
In an earlier statement, the Legal Affairs Minister related that Dhurjon would have studied the recommendations and guidelines of the CFATF.
He added that Dhurjon is having difficulties with the proposed amendments because of the many contradictions.
“You have the APNU’s proposals are to delete certain parts of the Principal Act and simply insert the proposed amendments. You will have to look at the insertions to see the rippling effects it will have within the four concerns of the legislation.”
On Tuesday, the government said its offer with relation to the fight against money-laundering and the financing of terrorism is the most suitable possibility to avoid further sanctions being imposed on Guyana by CFATF or the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
Hostage
According to the government, the A Partnership for National Unity’s (APNU) proposed amendments to the AML/CFT Act of 2009 can be subsequently tabled in the National Assembly, passed and assented to by President Donald Ramotar once the green light is given by CFATF.
Teixeira, the chairperson of the select committee said the opposition is holding the bill “hostage.”
She related that APNU on February 26 presented to President Ramotar a maximum situation, affirming clearly that the AML/CFT (Amendment) Bill will not revisit the House if its proposed amendments are not included in the bill. She added that albeit the amendments are collectively presented in the National Assembly, the coalition said the President must assent to the non-assented bill that was passed in Parliament and currently awaits his signature
On February 10, President Ramotar had recommended to APNU that the AML/CFT (Amendment) Bill 2013 which was agreed on by all parties sitting on the Special Select Committee be sent to the House. He had further proposed that a joint bi-partisan committee be set up to examine the Fiscal Transfers Bill that lays unasserted before him. This proposal was, however, flat out refused by the APNU.
The coalition’s amendments are opting to eliminate the powers of the Finance Minister to assign the director of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and give it to a committee of the National Assembly. Initially, APNU has also proposed the seizure of cash over Gy$2 million, as well as jewellery by the police or customs once there is reasonable suspicion of money laundering, but has since increased this amount to Gy$10 million.
The Alliance For Change (AFC) led by Khemraj Ramjattan from the inception of the committee in 2013 made it clear that it will not support the AML Bill until the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) was established, operationalised and budgetary provision made available, but during the February 26th meeting, it backed the coalition saying the amendments to the Principal Act must also be included in the bills.
