EFIU ‘LEAKS’: BE SEES SILVER LINING

MBABANE - Business Eswatini (BE) says reports seeking to expose leaked documents on the Farmers Bank have also helped to highlight some institutional strength and independence of the CBE.

BE management said, in a statement, that it had been made aware of the reports. They were compiled by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) titled: ‘Swazi Secrets - a glimpse inside the tiny kingdom’. One of the reports under the ‘Swazi Secrets’ banner, was that of the Farmers Bank’s application for a licence. It was alleged in the reports that information was leaked from the Eswatini Financial Intelligence Unit (EIFU). Said the BE, when responding to questions from the Times: “It would be improper to comment on something that is ongoing and which we are still trying to understand and confirm ourselves. That said though, one cannot deny that the story appears to expose areas of glaring institutional weakness, which need to be confirmed and thoroughly investigated. It also highlights some institutional strength and independence, which we applaud.”

BE said  the matter of the CBE standing its ground on a certain matter and the case of the minister of Finance recusing himself from chairing a meeting ostensibly to avoid a perceived conflict of interest, all served as a case in point for positive institutional governance and institutional integrity, transparency and independence. “Our view as BE is that we should not waste this crisis, but use it to formulate our remedial actions to address our weaknesses in the economy. There has been a concerted effort by regulatory authorities to close loopholes in the system and as BE, we will continue to fully throw our weight behind such moves,” the organisation said.

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It said it had engaged with its members in the financial sector, and could assure its stakeholders that its private banking and financial sector was secure, stable and sustainable. “As a society, we cannot ignore the fact that there are troubling instances of malfeasance and downright malpractice, which seem to be thriving in some sectors of our economy and which are, sadly, obscured from public view. This is alarming, to say the least. These widespread business malpractices which seek to subvert our financial regulatory framework should be rebuked with the contempt they deserve as they only serve to undermine the very objectives of government, which is to grow the economy for the benefit of all emaSwati,” the BE said.

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