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ASAHAN ang mas agresibong pag-usad sa ekonomiya ng bansa matapos umeksit ang Pilipinas sa tinaguriang “greylist” ng Financial Action Task Force (FATF) na nakabase sa Paris.
Sa isang pahayag, binigyang-pagkilala ni Senate President Francis Escudero ang administrasyon sa aniya’y pagpapatuloy ng sinimulan ni yumaong Pangulong Benigno Aquino III — ang pagkapon sa tinagufiang “dirty money.”
Sa ilalim ng administrasyong Aquino sumipa ang pagtugis ng gobyerno laban sa money laundering. Matapos ang isa’t kalahating dekada, tuluyang tinanggal ng FATF ang Pilipinas sa watchlist.
Para kay Escudero, kasabay ng pagbawi ng reputasyon ng bansa ang tiwala ng buong mundo sa Pilipinas sa larangan ng pananalapi para sa overseas Filipino workers. Asahan din aniya mas magiging kaakit-akit ang bansa bilang ligtas na destinasyon ng pamumuhunan.
“Being removed from the greylist of the FATF is the culmination of all the efforts of the Philippine government. This sends a strong message to the international community that we are a country that abides by laws and takes the matter of going after financing of criminal elements seriously,” ayon kay Escudero.
Mahigpit na binabantayan ni Escudero ang pagkilos ng bansa na maalis sa watchlist ng FATF.
Sa panahon ng pamumuno bilang chairman ng Senate Committee on Banks, Financial Institutions and Currencies nitong 2017, isinulong ni Escudero amyendahan ang Anti-Money Laundering Act after matapos muntikan nang mailagay ang bansa sa blacklist ng FATF.
Sa naturang panahon isinama ang casino sa sakop ng Anti-Money Laundering Act na inirekomenda ng FATF.
“Since then, we have continuously worked with the FATF to address the remaining obstacles to our removal from its watchlist. We thank President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for making this one of his administration’s priorities, as well as all the National AML/CFT Coordinating Committee led by Executive Lucas Bersamin for seeing this through to the end,” ayon kay Escudero.
“The inclusion in the FATF’s watchlist made it more difficult for the country to obtain credit and discouraged foreign banks from transacting with their Philippine counterparts. This also meant that the cost of sending money to the Philippines, particularly by OFWs, increased and led to the utilization of non-official channels.”
“It is the reputation of the Philippines in the international community that is at stake here. Now that we have hurdled this long-standing obstacle, we expect to see even more investment inflows into the country, as well as easier and less expensive transactions for our OFWs wherever they are situated,” pagtatapos ng lider ng senado. (ESTONG REYES)
