Cash withdrawal cap to hurt small traders

The Commission on Election (Comelec) money ban will hurt businesses.

Buddy Villasis, executive director of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), gave this statement in reaction to the Comelec’s implementing the ban.

Villasis said that the ban would disrupt businesses and commercial transactions including the releasing of salaries of employees.

Villasis was referring to the ban imposed by Comelec starting yesterday until May 13 prohibiting cash withdrawals of more than P100,000 from banks and other financial institutions.

¨On the business side, if you have requirement for cash and you are not allowed to move let´s say a million or maybe a P100,00, that would be a problem. This is because if you are paying people on a weekend basis and the election is on Monday, then you cannot move one million pesos causing a delay in paying of their employees’ salaries,¨ Villasis said.

¨I think this is a very unwise move of the Comelec,¨ Fernando Fajardo, executive director of Cebu Business Club said yesterday.

Fajardo who is also a professor on Economics at University of San Carlos (USC), said money that would come in and out the banks with or without the election was ¨normal,” and the Comelec money ban would affect the regular business activities.

¨It´s also confusing because I don´t know how they will implement it and if they have the capacity to implement it in the first place,¨ Fajardo said.

¨The money during election can not only be used for vote-buying, but there are many legitimate expenses for example payment for campaign materials,¨ he said.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) also earlier said that limiting cash withdrawals to P100,000 might disrupt normal business and commercial transactions.

unsound

The BSP said it was also constrained from enforcing the Comelec resolution because it would involve looking into bank deposit accounts.

¨This is essentially unsound and in violation of Republic Act (R.A) no. 1405, as amended (Secrecy on Peso deposits) and R.A. No. 6426 (Secrecy on foreign currency deposits), ¨ the BSP said in a statement.

William Dee, Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry vice chairperson, said that the ban wouldn’t address vote-buying and it would create difficulties for small and medium businesses. (See related story on on page 14).

The CCCI has 650 members and is one of the biggest business groups in Cebu. /Correspondent Tweeny M. Malinao