The specialized committee on National Security and Public Order of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) on Friday conducted a public hearing on the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Act 2012 (Amendment) Bill 2024.
The bill which was tabled in its first reading by the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Justice Ruben Madol Arol, earlier this month, was given to the TNLA Committee of National Security and Public Order for scrutiny before being tabled for the second reading.
Addressing journalists after the session, Samuel Bahori Loty, the deputy chairperson of the committee, said the purpose of the public hearing is to get more views from stakeholders.
“We have invited different institutions, chiefly the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and the Economic Divisions of the National Security Service are here,” he told reporters.
According to Loty, parliamentary regulations stipulate that any bill that is tabled to the House has to undergo a public hearing to incorporate expert views from different stakeholders.
He said other invited institutions included the Economics Crime Unit of the police’s Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and the Banking Provision Department of the Bank of South Sudan here with us. Civil society organizations, several other stakeholders, and the media were also invited to witness and contribute to the hearing.
“We have different charges for different crimes. For instance, for penalties of acts of terrorism financing, any person convicted shall be liable to a penalty of at least SSP 350 million or sentenced to life in prison. Meanwhile, when a corporate body that is convicted of an offense of terrorism financing shall be liable to a fine of up to SSP 700 million or subject to liquidation in prohibition or imprisonment, for that matter,” he explained. “So, these are some of the sections we are critically looking at. This is just one example among many other crimes mentioned in the bill.”
Loty, however, said these charges have been opposed by some members and that the bill requires some adjustments to match the current situation.
“As all of you may be aware, money laundering has been an issue in this country and related also to corruption. We have had reports from the Financial Intelligence Unit and we are losing billions of dollars through our Juba International Airport alone. This is a concern to us as parliamentarians and as we are reviewing this law,” he said. “We are also aware that some businesses in this country are used for financing terrorist activities in other countries. This law is very important because it is going to check on those types of illicit activities.”