AMLC vows independence amid Binay freeze order
Vice President Jejomar Binay. FILE PHOTO
After being called “one-sided” and “part of a conspiracy” by the camp of Vice President Jejomar Binay, the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) on Friday maintained its independence and denied allegations of political persecution.
In a short statement, the AMLC said all cases they are filing have sufficient basis in the Anti-Money Laundering Act.
“The AMLC is an independent government agency fully committed to combating money laundering and helping preserve the integrity of the financial system,” the statement read, adding that the council has been doing its job “quietly and without fanfare.”
AMLC also vowed that it would never allow itself to be an instrument of any political party in pushing vested interests.
“[AMLC] is not, and will never be, beholden to anyone but the Filipino people,” AMLC said. “The AMLC will continue to discharge its legal mandate without fear or favor.”
The statement added that all issues regarding a pending case must be raised “before the proper court.”
The Binay camp has publicly accused the AMLC of conniving with certain parties over the freeze order on his alleged multi-million banks accounts to supposedly sabotage his presidential bid in 2016.
On Monday, the Court of Appeals granted the Anti-Money Laundering Council’s (AMLC) petition to freeze the Vice President’s bank accounts allegedly amounting to P600-million. This was in connection with the investigation of the Office of the Ombudsman on the allegedly overpriced Makati City Hall Building II and Makati Science High School.
READ: Court freezes Binay assets
Binay on Thursday denied that he has hidden wealth, adding that only five of the 242 bank accounts in the freeze order were under his name.
READ: Binay: I don’t have hidden wealth
The AMLC report supposedly showed that a total of P11 billion, since 2008, were recorded in the bank accounts of Binay, his son Makati Mayor Junjun Binay and his alleged dummies.
READ: AMLC: Binay, allies deposits reach P11B
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