IN my September 3 column, I wrote about the excessive greed for money that fuels misconduct such as fraud and corruption-the most pressing, interconnected issue in the country right now and labeled as the largest corruption scandal in history.
The Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) has asked the Court of Appeals (CA) to freeze assets of individuals and entities linked to anomalous flood control projects. These assets cover more than 700 bank accounts, insurance policies, luxury vehicles and real estate properties.
A freeze order is valid for 20 days, during which it will be determined whether to lift or extend it for up to 6 months if the CA finds probable cause that the frozen accounts are related to illicit activities. If the court does not file a case within this period, the freeze order is automatically lifted.
Why issuing freeze order of bank accounts suspected of graft and plunder a crucial first step? It is an important action to prevent movement or disposal of funds and other assets believed to come from unlawful activities. Criminals and plunderers typically move illegal wealth quickly into shell companies, foreign bank accounts, expensive purchases, gambling, or cryptocurrencies.
A freeze order stops them from transferring or liquidating assets while investigations are ongoing. Without it, assets will be very difficult for authorities to trace and recover.
Banks of accounts under investigation are legally required to act on a freeze order immediately and lock these bank accounts to prevent any access or movement. Funds stay locked until the freeze order expires or gets lifted. Banks also preserve transaction history of frozen accounts and provide the AMLC with records and related documents that can be used for the investigation.
The ongoing Senate probe on the issue is becoming more and more complex by the day. Filipinos want to know the truth and see more names exposed, but most importantly, we want these investigations to bring justice-prosecution of parties involved and real reforms to curb systemic corruption in government.
Loud and clear, beyond recovery of stolen public funds, people want restitution. It is taxpayers’ money stolen, and assets recovered should be returned to the people. Can the government give us a tax break or holiday, or reduction in income tax and VAT for a period? In other jurisdictions, however, governments will go after prosecution and asset recovery, then use recovered assets for social services and programs, rather than tax holiday or offsetting tax collections.
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) collected Php2.85 trillion tax in 2024, with income taxes accounted for 53.75 percent of the collection. If only our taxes are put to good use or intended purpose such as the government’s flagship projects and social services, the country can improve its climate resilience, disaster risk prevention and management, support sustainable economic growth and we will not be in this predicament now.
In a recent interview, BSP Governor Eli M. Remolona Jr. assured the public that the banking sector remains strong and liquid. Banks, on the other hand, will continue to act as gatekeepers to detect suspicious transactions, and support additional reforms such as strengthening checks and balances, stricter measures to make it more difficult for illegal funds to enter and exit the financial system.
Even if we are all angry and dismayed, we must keep our faith in the integrity of our institutions, judicial process and law enforcement. We should continue to press for transparency and accountability in governance. We deserve a government that’s credible, honest, just and truly serves the people.