IT is now a foregone conclusion that after nearly one year of the tabling of the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Bill in Parliament, that the Opposition party, APNU, and its offshoot, the AFC, are not serious about passing that Bill. 

They have lied; they have made absurd demands; they have made unreasonable recommendations; they have tried to misinform the public, more so their own supporters. They have misrepresented the consequences of Guyana being blacklisted, and in so doing, have cunningly attempted to mislead this nation into believing that they have its interest at heart.
What heartless creatures they are! They are trying to sacrifice the prosperity of an entire nation to satisfy their insatiable lust for power.
The dangers of being blacklisted have been visited and expounded upon by me in a couple of articles previously, and many writers have dealt with such dangers exhaustively, so I will not repeat it here. We cannot overemphasise the importance of this Bill! The non-passage of this Bill will cripple this nation!
The amendments proposed by APNU, according to the Caribbean Financial Action Task Force (CFATF) Financial Adviser, Roger Hernandez, are non-compliant with international standards, and are outside the recommendations tabled by the CFATF, therefore one needs to ask a very simple question: why is APNU and the AFC hell-bent on derailing the Bill? Will the non-passage of the Bill assist the economic development of the country? Will the non-passage benefit the common man? Who stand to benefit if the Bill is not passed? The answer is clear: APNU, AFC and the criminals will benefit! Is it a coincidence that they are mentioned here together?
After nearly one year, David Granger, Leader of the Opposition, wants ‘a cast iron’ (I think his choice of metal is poor) guarantee that the four Bills rejected by the President must be assented to, and only then will APNU support the Anti-Money Laundering Bill.
Is the Opposition really serious? The President has made it clear that he has rejected these Bills because of issues of constitutionality. Why did the Opposition, including the AFC, waste precious time with the Select Committee which they eventually boycotted (the AFC Leader was absent from the entire proceedings) if their objective was not to support the Bill?
APNU and the AFC have held this entire nation at ransom, even though major stakeholders in this country, the Private Sector Commission, CARICOM, the Organisation of American States and others, and a wide cross-section of the population of this country have appealed to them to support this important Bill.
I have said it before, and I will reiterate it here: Ramjattan’s deadly antics with APNU cannot deceive this nation anymore, but there is still time to do the right thing and support this vitally important Bill. And if the AFC is serious, then they should indeed make ‘the RIGHT TURN’ for this beautiful country.
Now is not the time to be selfish! Our country is in danger! Do not be a TRAITOR or a NAMAK HARAM!
If APNU and AFC truly love this country, then give her a gift on her Republic Anniversary! Support the AML/CFT Bill!

HASEEF YUSUF
AFC Councillor, Region 6