Bangladesh Ambassador to the Philippines John Gomes, while trying his best to remain diplomatic, could not hide his dismay over the delay in the return of the “money of hardworking people of Bangladesh.”
Amid the continued noise created by the cross-border $81-million bank heist from Bangladesh to the Philippine banking system, Gomes told the BusinessMirror that his country is optimistic that the money will be returned, although they could not understand the drag in the process of the local justice system.
His appeal is now directed to the Aquino administration.
“I think that this thing should be finished definitely before the next government comes into power. It will be an achievement of this government if they can wrap it up. I am not frustrated. I am not at all thinking this money will never go to Bangladesh…. The only thing is that Bangladesh expects this money to go fast and they want to see some results. This delay is the only concern,” he said.
Gomes added that the government of Bangladesh is grateful for the help extended by Philippine officials, but said the money should be returned to them by the end of this administration’s term.
“Now, the date of hearing, the first [hearing] is on the third of May. And then we have to wait and see how much longer it takes for the next hearing. We have faith on the systems over here. The secretary of justice was very nice to me, very cordial. The complete thing should be completed before the next administration comes,” Gomes said.
Earlier, casino junket operator Kim Wong has returned some of the stolen money in tranches to the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC).
On March 31 the casino junket operator returned $4.6 million, and another P38.32 million the following week. In one of the Senate hearings, it was also revealed that Wong returned another P200 million to the AMLC. But the Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC) and Philrem Service Corp. (Philrem), the other two entities involved in the scam, have yet to promise return of the money, per their statements in the latest bouts of Senate hearing on the case.
RCBC President-on-leave Lorenzo Tan earlier told the Senate that they are to convince the bank’s Board of Directors to return the money passed on to them if found liable. The rough estimate of money that passed through RCBC is about $50 million.
Gomes said for the next Senate hearing, they want a follow-up on whether RCBC will return the money, and if Tan was able to convince the bank’s board to do so.
“Now this Philrem, [they have] $17 million, everyone knows it. Sen. [Sergio] R. Osmeña [III] has told it very clearly. AMLC has charged that she [Philrem President Salud Bautista] has 17 million dollars. And she is dilly-dallying over here and in the Senate…the way she is behaving. She should return the money. If Kim Wong has done it, she should return the money. Why is she not returning the money? What is her problem?” Gomes added.
The remittance firm denied in the Senate hearing that it is holding $17 million of the $81-million stolen money.
Gomes also said hearings and legal processes should “not be delayed” and should push through, so the money of the “hardworking people of Bangladesh” gets returned, as the stolen funds will be used for infrastructure development in their country.
“We already know where the money is, and we know that [the claimant] is only Bangladesh. So it is not very difficult. If there was other claimant, it is okay, so that is why it should be completed very soon,” he said. “It should be finished quickly, the earlier this investigation is done and the $81 million is returned to Bangladesh and this whole chapter will close. I think it is good for the reputation of this country also.”
After a series of Senate hearings on the case, the investigation in the upper chamber will resume after the May 9 elections, while the first hearing on the forfeiture case will be on May 3.
Gomez said he appreciates the Department of Justices (DOJ) help, although he has no choice but to wait and see on how things will turn out, especially since he does not know how the legal processes work in the country.
“I don’t know when this money will go back to Bangladesh. The DOJ and AMLC are working together to do this quickly so it won’t take so much time. But I don’t even know what does that mean. It is a very clear case, they are
saying very soon. But, like I said, I don’t know what that means,” he said.
“We don’t know the systems over here. The problem is that I just have to accept whatever your rules and regulations are here. I just have to wait and see. That is the only way to make an assessment. So far, I have not got a single dollar back. Not yet. This is a fact. The money is with AMLC in their vaults,” he added.
The ambassador said he has reached out to talk to everyone involved and is still open to talk to anyone involved in the case.
Addressing loopholes
Gomes also talked about the vulnerabilities of the systems, both on Bangladesh’s and the Philippines’s side.
“I agree, we have weaknesses in our system —in our computer system, in our IT (information technology) system, so the hacker went inside. I agree. But not a single dollar has been taken by any other. It all has come here that is a fact. It is all accounted over here. The responsibility of Bangladesh is that our system has to improve,” Gomes said.
The governor of the central bank of Bangladesh earlier resigned following the ordeal. Gomes also revealed that Bangladesh has hired two IT companies from New York to address their system’s flaws. “Hacking has become an epidemic now. Hacking will happen but we have to fight it, we have to be stronger than those people.
We have our vulnerability, but Bangladesh now has been more strict,” Gomes said.
Gomez added that, while addressing the question of weak systems back in their country, the Philippines, too, must look into possible loopholes on how illegal money came to the local banking system.
The ambassador said, while there is no problem with having a bank-secrecy law, the protection should not cover the accounts in RCBC, as they were all faked.
“There are no persons here. All the accounts are fake and William Go says it is not mine. So that does not apply over there and that was what the senators were trying to tell them,” he said. What is also surprising to Gomes, according to him, is the amount of control the AMLC has over casinos.
“We came to know that the Philippines is one of the three countries in the world where the government does not have any control over the casinos. Now that is very strange,” Gomes said. “That was a little…I was surprised and I think this gang, they knew it. That this is the vulnerability of the Philippine system.”
Bilateral relations
Gomes said the relations of the Philippines and Bangladesh should not be affected by only “a handful of people.” “Bilaterally, we are in the best position now. This should not hurt the relationship. It is a shame that these couple of people are out to damage the emotional relationship of the Philippines and Bangladesh.”
He added: “This small group of people, I don’t think they should be allowed to just take the two countries for a right. They cheated the relationship between Philippines and Bangladesh, they are the traitors. Not only that they have gained personally but they can hurt the relationship between two countries and we will not allow that to happen.”
“Right from the beginnings of our country, the Philippines has already been with us. That is why our relationship is so strong.”