Enrile: It’s illegal for money laundering council to release bank documents

MANILA, Philippines—Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile warned Tuesday about the larger implications if it is true that members of the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) or the central bank leaked banks records pertaining to Chief Justice Renato Corona’s bank deposits.

Enrile cleared officials of the Philippine Savings Bank (PSBank) of responsibility for the apparent leak, noting that they submitted Corona’s bank records only “by virtue of respecting the authority” of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas and the AMLC during an audit in 2010.

“I am convinced that the leak did not come from the bank,” he told reporters. “Whether the (AMLC) or the BSP was the source of the leak is a conclusion that can be drawn from the questions that I asked” at Monday’s hearing of the Corona impeachment trial.

Asked if evidence leaked by the AMLC would be admissible in the impeachment trial, he replied: “Illegal yun eh. Bawal. The prohibition covers everybody, from the President down.

Enrile agreed with Sen. Joker Arroyo, who warned at Monday’s impeachment trial hearing about the possibility of Malacanang using the AMLC to blackmail its enemies.

“Yes, because the (AMLC) is not supposed to examine any account without going to court,” Enrile said in Filipino, noting that the pending bill amending the anti-money laundering law “will be examined very thoroughly.”

“That goes to private rights already,” he said, adding: “If that’s true, then they’re not respecting the law anymore. They’re not following the law, which they’re supposed to obey and implement. The executive department is the implementing body.”

Arroyo earlier noted that Corona had been the subject of an AMLC investigation from September to November 2010, a year before he was impeached by the administration-controlled House of Representatives.

And while the impeachment trial is ongoing, the chief justice is also being investigated by the Bureau of Internal Revenue for possible tax evasion, the senator added.

Arroyo warned that government agencies might also have “dossiers” of senators now sitting as judges in the impeachment court.

“What we do not know is that dossiers are also being gathered against us,” he said. “If we offend Malacañang, if we do not follow Malacañang, they can proceed against us with the information gathered through (AMLC). It’s a disturbing thought.”

Enrile said the authenticity of Corona’s purported bank documents and the manner by which they had been acquired will affect the admissibility of evidence presented in relation to them later in the trial.

“If it’s not a fake document, at least it is an altered document. It has a relation to the admissibility of the document as evidence,” he said, referring to the documents submitted by the prosecution which prompted him to subpoena Corona’s bank records.

“There would be a problem at the time when they (prosecutors) will offer the evidence because then, we will be confronted with the question: Can we admit this evidence given the fact that it was illegally obtained?” he added.

Enrile also rejected the idea of rushing the impeachment trial without allowing the defense to argue its case. He said the Senate was trying to avoid a Bill of Attainder wherein the respondent would be convicted “without proper trial.”

He said such a situation might lead to the declaration of the impeachment trial as unconstitutional. “That would be big trouble,” he said.

Rep. Niel Tupas Jr., chief House prosecutor, earlier claimed that his panel had established “proof beyond reasonable doubt” to convict Corona. President Aquino has also been calling openly for Corona’s removal while the trial is ongoing.