Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero on Wednesday said he is optimistic that the bill mandating all government officials and employees to waive their rights under the Bank Secrecy Law or Republic Act 1405, and the Foreign Currency Deposit Act (RA 6426) will finally see the light under the 19th Congress.
Escudero earlier refiled the measure as Senate Bill No. 56 making it one of his priority legislation. The bill seeks to mandate all government personnel, except those serving in an honorary capacity, to submit a written permission allowing the Office of the Ombudsman to access and examine all their deposits, including foreign currency deposits, here and abroad.
“Nakailang Kongreso na rin na hindi pumapasa pero hindi pa rin ako titigil. Simple ang paniniwala ko: Kung wala kang kinakatakutan at kung wala kang tinatago, wala kang dapat katakutan sa panukalang ito (It’s been tackled in Congress many times but failed to pass but I won’t stop. My belief is simple: if you have nothing to hide, if you have nothing to fear, then you have no fears about this bill),” Escudero said.
“Ika nga nila kung ayaw mo naman pumirma ng waiver eh ‘di ‘wag kang pumasok sa gobyerno (As they said, if they do not wish to write a waiver, then they shouldn’t enter government service),” he explained.
Escudero had always submitted to the Senate Secretary his Statement of Assets and Liabilities (SALN) together with a signed waiver on secrecy of bank deposits to set an example to his fellow public servants.
The bill further include deposits in banks and other financial institutions both in and outside the Philippines, as well as investment bonds issued by the government, its political subdivisions and instrumentalities.
To ensure that the waiver will not be used improperly for political persecution or “witch hunt,” Escudero stated in the bill that “only the Office of the Ombudsman shall obtain or use the written permission or waiver, or any other information or data obtained by virtue thereof.”
He also said the written permission or waiver will be used exclusively for investigating a duly verified complaint or for prosecuting a case before the courts.
It also tasks the Office of the Ombudsman to enlist the help of the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) in the drafting of the written permission or waiver.
Escudero said there is an urgent need to introduce more exceptions from the secrecy of bank deposits as the existing ones are quite limited and exclusive.
“Currently, RA 1405 admits of four (4) exceptions while RA 6426 only one (1), which essentially treats foreign currency deposits with absolute confidentiality. The policy intent is quite tenable given that the above laws on bank deposits have passed the test of time and remained unchanged,” he pointed out.
“However, such intent has its own unintended consequences – this is when banks are used as institutions to hide illegal wealth, fund illegal activities, launder money, evade taxes and commit other financial crimes under the mantle of a statutorily mandated secrecy. It is for this reason that all countries now, except the Philippines, have lifted the secrecy of bank deposits,” Escudero stressed.