The government yesterday confirmed that Guyana has gotten a reprieve over the non-passage of crucial anti-money laundering reforms while warning opposition parties that the legislation must be updated before the end of month when a progress report is due to regional body, the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF).
CFATF adviser Roger Hernandez had told Stabroek News on Thursday that no further action was recommended against Guyana by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) over the stalled the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) (Amendment) Bill, following the conclusion of its plenary in Paris, France.
In a statement yesterday, the government said it had been advised that the FATF Plenary members on Thursday accepted the CFATF recommendation that Guyana and other delinquent territories be reviewed subsequent to the CFATF Plenary’s next decision, in May of 2014.
The government had issued dire warnings about the possible outcome of the Paris meeting and has been pressing the opposition for a speedy agreement on the bill, for which A Partner-ship for National Unity (APNU) has tabled last-minute amendments. The latest reprieve will now likely see further drawn-out discussions, to which the government is strongly opposed.
CFATF last November called for countermeasures against Guyana after the country’s failure to update the laws in keeping with prior recommendations by the body.
“The Government calls once again on the APNU and AFC leaders that the AMLCFT Amendment Bill 22, 2013 must be passed in the National Assembly as urgently as possible before the end of February, 2014,” it said in the statement.
According to the government, Guyana has to file a report by February 28, 2014 to the CFATF for its review and report to Plenary members in May 2014.
“This report will include Guyana’s plan of action to correct its deficiencies as part of the ongoing process. “Guyana is expected to attach to that report the conclusions on the AML/CFT Amendment Bill No. 22, 2013 which is before the Parliamentary Special Select Committee and a copy of the said enacted Bill to be analysed, correlated to the deficiencies to provide the report to Plenary in May, 2014,” it said in the statement, while adding that between February and May, it is expected that there will be dialogue and discussions with CFATF with regards to the preparation of the report for the plenary.
Government warned that if the May Plenary is dissatisfied with Guyana’s progress, the CFATF’s 2013 November Statement already provides the decision for the country’s referral to FATF, which is meeting in June 2014.
The government also used its statement to thank citizens and civil society bodies, and, in particular, the business community and their organisations, the labour movement, the diplomatic community, the Organization of American States and the Caricom, which it said publicly lent support to its efforts in what were and continue to be “unique and unprecedented circumstances.”
Meanwhile, the main opposition APNU yesterday denied an assertion that it rejected an offer by President Donald Ramotar to set up a bilateral committee to deal with the Bills not assented to by him despite being passed by the National Assembly.
It said the remarks were attributed to Presidential Adviser on Governance Gail Teixeira, at a post cabinet briefing on Thursday, as reported in the Kaieteur News.
APNU leader David Granger recently announced that APNU would withhold support from certain government bills in the National Assembly unless it gets an assurance from the executive that bills already passed would receive presidential assent and those already enacted would be operationalised. Granger later signaled that an agreement on the bills would be crucial for APNU’s support of the anti-money laundering bill, in particular.
“APNU has not rejected any offer for bilateral talks on the non- assented bills,” the coalition said in a brief statement. It also released a letter written to Ramotar by Granger, in which he indicated that the opposition stood ready to meet him as early as possible to discuss a way forward on the bills.
In the letter, dated February 9th and titled “Relations between the Executive and Legislative Branches, Granger said that the coalition believed that there is an opportunity for progress to be made in improving relations between the Executive and Legislative branches of government in the national interest.
He urged that they we meet as early as possible to determine a way forward.
However, he said it was proposed that first the work of the special select committee on AML/CFT Bill be brought to a mutually acceptable conclusion. He also floated the proposal that both sides should seek common ground on crafting a definite process by which the unassented bill could be returned for presidential assent.
Towards this, he had urged that the Prime Minister – as Leader of the House – make a mutually agreed statement in the National Assembly at its past sitting on Monday, committing both the President and Leader of the Opposition to re-examining the bills with a view to their reconsideration and reactivation by a definite date.
“We renew our commitment stated in our letter that we “stand ready to meet you as early as possible to discuss, in the spirit of consensus and compromise,” the issues arising from our concerns,” Granger said.
