The Senate, running out of time as the 16th Congress adjourned its final session on Monday, is leaving it up to the next Congress to enact remedial legislations proposed by the Blue-Ribbon Committee to prevent a repeat of the $81-million money- laundering scheme involving funds stolen by hackers from the Bank of Bangladesh account at the Federal Reserve in New York.
Sen. Sergio R. Osmeña III, who spearheaded the inquiry, said Blue Ribbon panel chairman Sen. Teofisto D. Guingona III is set to file the report on Tuesday.
The report, containing their findings and recommendations resulting from seven committee hearings, is expected to be pursued by the members of the 17th Congress that convenes in July.
“Yes. That is the system,” Osmeña told the BusinessMirror.
The committee listed legislative and policy recommendations that the Senate probers endorsed for the members of the 17th Congress to pursue in order to avert another big-time money-laundering scandal involving casinos and the local banking system, which tainted the Philippines’s image in the global financial community.
Osmeña also confirmed that among the recommendations is the early passage of a law that will include casinos among covered institutions under the anti-money-laundering law, in effect amending Republic Act 9160, to strengthen the powers of the Anti-Money Laundering Council to check and impose sanctions against violators.
The committee, likewise, endorsed easing bank secrecy restrictions, as well as amendments to the foreign-currency deposit law.
Specifically, the next Congress is also expected to fast-track passage of a refiled version of Senate Bill 2106, entitled “an Act Designating Casino Operators as Covered Persons Under Republic Act 9160 [Amla] of 2001.”
The bill was first proposed in the 16th Congress to regulate casinos and prevent their use as channels to stash funds intended to bankroll terrorist acts. Under SB 2106, casino operators, with respect to their gaming operations, will be designated as covered persons under Republic Act 9160.