Senators welcome FATF decision on blacklist

MANILA, Philippines - Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and Sen. Sergio Osmeña welcomed yesterday the move of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) not to place the Philippines in its blacklist and allow lawmakers to come out with more amendments to the anti-money laundering law (AMLA).

“I don’t think that they would really be that callous and unwise in imposing their will on a country like the Philippines, trying its best to comply with its obligation under its treaty commitment,” Enrile said.

“Nonetheless, we operate with deliberative bodies composed of people with different notions of what is right and what’s wrong. So I’m glad that they did not blacklist us.”

Enrile said he and the other senators will continue to discuss possible amendments when Congress resumes after a break next month.

Enrile is particularly against placing tax evasion as among the predicate crimes to be covered by the amendments.

Politics can play a big role in wrongly identifying some persons as suspected tax evaders just because they have enemies in the government, he added.

Osmeña remains optimistic that Congress will be able to come out with the amendments expanding the predicate crimes under the AMLA by early next year.

He lauded Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) chairman Vicente Aquino for being able to convince the FATF not to put the country on the blacklist.

However, Enrile disagrees with Osmeña’s proposition to include real estate business in the monitoring list of the AMLC on suspicion that money launderers buy properties to protect their illegitimate income.

“Ano pakialam nung real estate operators sa money laundering (What have real estate operators got to do with money laundering)? How can you launder dirty money through real estate?” he said.

Enrile said even without putting real estate under the predicate crime from anti-money laundering activities, the government can check the sources of income of would-be buyers through the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).

“Even without money laundering, if that is a proper question for the BIR, they can do it on their own without being involved with money laundering,” he said.

Osmeña believes real estate transactions should be covered by the amendments to the anti-money laundering law.

“I did tell them that one of the biggest money laundering activities in this country is buying real estate,” he said.

“The big drug dealers buy real estate all over... they’ll buy in Cebu, Davao, in Zamboanga... Then after one or two years they’ll sell so that’s already legal.