Collins Edomaruse
13 April 2005
Zurich, Switzerland — The efforts of President Olusegun Obasanjo at stemming the incidents of money laundering by officials of governmnent at various levels yesterday received a boost in Zurich, Switzerland, as Swiss Bankers Association said it has classified Nigerians as High-risk customers.
Receiving African journalists who are on an information seeking trip to the country in his office, Head of International Communications of the association, Mr. Janes Nason, also said banks that make up the association have equally been warned to be more careful in treating customers from Nigeria.
Regreting the position of the association as it affects Nigeria, Nason said the uncovering of the late General Sani Abacha's accounts in 19 of the banks in Switzerland was a turning point for the country's financial sector.
He said the international media bashing the country received regarding its being perceived as a centre or safe haven for dirty money, prompted the authorities to review the country's financial sector's regulation with a view to strengthening them.
Corroborating Nason's disclosure, a member of the Executive Board of the association and Head of Financial Market in Switzerland, Dr. Renate Schwob, also told journalists that the Swiss government, since the Abacha debacle, had made new rules for the sector.
Schwob, an attorney, said a new Act: "Verification of the contracting partner's identity and declaration of the beneficial owner", has made it mandatory for banks to undertake to verify the identity of the contracting partner when establishing business relations with said partner".
This, she said, implies that banks must take necessary action or be guided by the regulation while opening accounts or passbooks; opening of security accounts; entering into fiduciary transactions; renting of safe-deposits boxes; entering into management agreements for assets deposited with third parties; the execution of transactions with securities, currencies as well as precious metals and other commodities exceeding 25,000 Swiss Francs."
Beside, she said the government has asked that the provisions of penal law, articles 305(b) and 350 be strictly enforced.
She added that the Swiss Act on Prevention of Money Laundering in the Financial Sector and the Ordinance of the Federal Banking Commission concerning the prevention of money laundering has equally been given more impetus.
The attorney added that there were several other steps that the government was taking to stop dirty money coming into the country's financial sector.
The visit of the journalists, who are nationals of Nigeria and Ghana, was part of the activities of the team.
The information-seeking trip, organised by the Swiss embassies in both countries, would take the journalists to Zurich, Basel, Bern and Geneva.
The incidence of looting public money and stashing it in western financial institutions is a global problem and developing/developed countries as well as international organizations are at a loss on how to stem or control the phenomenon.
Heads of States such as "Baby Doc" Duvalier of Haiti, Ferdinand Marcos of Philippines , Mobutu Sese Seko of Zaire , and President Suharto of Indonesia are the most publicized culprits of this global crime.
It has been estimated that hundreds of billions of dollars have been expatriated both by these persons and lesser known figures.
General Abacha, the late Head of State, however joined the league of the biggest culprits of this crime, as a source put the estimated amount he and his cronies stole at between $12 to 16 billion.
Abacha ruled Nigeria from November 1993 to June 1998 when he died.
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