Increase the likelihood of crooks being caught – Commonwealth SG

May 06, 2018 News

Guyana and other Commonwealth member states are being called upon to focus on increasing the likelihood of crooks being caught and relieved of their ill-gotten gains.
Secretary General of The Commonwealth Secretariat, Baroness Patricia Scotland, said the focus is on the effectiveness of the anti-money laundering legislation.
“We have to increase the likelihood that the crooks will be caught and secondly, we have to relieve them of the burden of their ill-gotten gains. The two things they enter into crime for is the money.
“They think that they wouldn’t get caught so we have to increase the likelihood that they will get caught; we have to take away all the assets that they illicitly obtain from their corrupt activities. If we do that, we make crime not worth their while,” Baroness Scotland explained.
The SG attended the two-day training for judicial officers in Guyana which ended on Friday. She shared the view that when one looks at the difference between the money held legitimately and the money needed it is the sum equivalent to that which is siphoned off across the world by corruption.
According to the SG, there are those who are internationally attacking all the systems whether it is through money laundering, people trafficking, drug trafficking, arms dealing or terrorism.
“We are all therefore at threat,” Baroness Scotland.
She said that there is the belief that money laundering is a victimless crime where no one suffers. The SG noted that that this is not true because if the money is taken out of legitimate processes then the people who suffer are all the citizens.
“Where do we get the money to build our schools, to make our roads, to send our children to university, to do the healthcare that we need and to really keep our environment as good as it can be and house all our people?
“If we don’t have the money we can’t do that. This money laundering and fraud and dishonesty, it has victims and the victims are the old, the poor, disadvantaged and those in need of support,” Baroness Scotland pointed out.
She said that work is ongoing to improve anti-corruption instruments, particularly as Africa opens up to provide market access to 2.4 billion people.
“We are going to take advantage of this new market. We have to have fair system, robust systems, but we also have to make sure that the corrupt does not take advantage of this new delivery,” Baroness Scotland stated.