By Nasratu Kargbo
One of the proposals made in the bill entitled the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating of Financing of Terrorism and Financing the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction of 2023, is for the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) to become an autonomous body.
During the pre-legislative hearing of the bill on the 4th of March 2024, the Director of FIU David Borbor explained that the bill apart from proposing that the institution becomes autonomous as required by international standards is to designate the office with the responsibility of being the sole national central body in charge of receipt, analysis and dissemination of financial intelligence.
“The issue of autonomy is very key, this means that operational decisions have to be taken by the Director of the head of the FIU without any hindrance or influence by any external party,” Borbor said.
He added that their functions include indicting and sending people to jail, and it is, therefore, important that the work they do is free from blackmail or character assassination of people.
He said being autonomous is one of the requirements for FIU to be part of the Egmont Group which facilitates the exchange of knowledge, information, and cooperation among member financial intelligence units across the world.
Speaking on some of the significance of tackling money laundering, terrorism financing, and financing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, he explained that these activities pose a threat to the integrity of financial systems, national security, and global stability.
Borbor stressed that the bill is a critical step in strengthening their defences against illicit activities, and seeks to enhance the country’s legal framework by introducing methods to detect, investigate and prevent these activities.
Responding to the question about the threshold for a certain transaction to be considered money laundering, Borbor said that there is none in money laundering, but explained that there are triggers that indicate to them that a certain transaction relates to money laundering
The Director explained that when banks are onboarding new customers, they need to know them, their sources of funds, and what they are expected to do during their relationship.
He said if for instance someone is identified as a member of Parliament and their source of income is their monthly emolument, then if the bank sees more than what is expected of an MP, that could be a red flag indicating a suspicious transaction. He said such transactions are reported to the FIU which does the needful by investigating.
He added that sometimes it is not just the amount of money that comes into one’s bank account but the behavior that is not consistent with what the financial system knows about the owner from the outset.
Deputy Minister of Finance 1 Kadiatu Allie said money laundering poses a great threat not just to the economy but also to global security, explaining that it allows criminals to hide their illicit possessions, fund terrorism, and perpetuate corruption.
“It is imperative that we redouble our efforts to tackle this menace and protect our financial system from devastating consequences,” she said. FIU is presently a unit under the Ministry of Finance.
Copyright © 2024 Politico (06/03/24)
