Letter To The Editor: Reply to TF editorial "politics and banking do not mix"

Thank you for the opportunity to publish my response to the editorial dated January 16, 2009 published by The FREEMAN under the heading "Politics and banking do not mix".

Yes, I could not agree more on this adage. Indeed, politics and banking should not mix. The editorial is a reaction to the article published by The FREEMAN last Jan. 14 under the heading "Ahong dares Paz to answer RBS depositors' questions".

Even during my employment at RBS during the 90's and after I was no longer connected with the bank, I have been a faithful depositor at RBS' Lapu-Lapu branch for more than a decade.

I did not let politics dictate my business relationship with the bank, even if Mrs. Radaza is the President of RBS. When I declared my independence last November 2008 from the group of Mayor Boy Radaza, I did not close my accounts. Such is my belief that politics and banking should not be mixed.

From early December, RBS branches started not to have any transactions until it declared that it is on "bank holiday" on January 5, 2009. You may question why I did not speak out at that time. 

It was because the bank manager of RBS Lapu-Lapu, in my almost daily calls to her, gave me assurances that they were applying for a loan from Central Bank, and once it is granted that it will be able to service its clients once again.

Before the long Christmas break, I was again assured by the bank manager that the loan has been granted and that the management was just complying with the requirements of the CB.

Even at RBS' announcement that they are on bank holiday at the start of the year (Jan. 5, 2009), which caught me and my wife by surprise, we still did not react because we relied in management's statement explanation for the bank holiday.

However, what really stunned us was the Jan. 11, 2009 article from a national daily by Daxim Lucas with the heading "Fictitious loans found in rural bank", that informed the public through its Chairman, Peter Gaisano, that there were P1.2 billion worth of loans found by its external auditor, RS Bernaldo & Associates, that were either fictitious or granted by management without proper approvals. 

Now, we are also calling on the Central Bank, thru PDIC, to inform the public the results of their examination of the bank's records and to inform the depositors when they can start processing payment of their deposits. The goal here is not political, but assurance coming from management, especially the President, to tell the public what really went wrong, why the bank closed after only a day of alleged "massive withdrawals." 

 If the public is made to believe that the proximity of RBS and PCRB branches are the main reason, then why were there no massive withdrawals on nearby banks?In Lapu-Lapu alone, there are at least 7 banks in between RBS and PCRB. If RBS closed after a day of alleged "massive withdrawals", there is something fishy. The only confirmed "massive" withdrawal was in their Dumaguete branch on December 10, 2008 and not on the other branches. The Legacy group, at least, admitted that they had a month of massive withdrawals, not just a day.

My calling for the truth is to assure the public that this is an isolated case and , therefore, should not be a cause of panic among depositors of other banks because the problem is internal with RBS only and its management.

In behalf of all RBS' depositors, we welcome Madam Paz Radaza's statement that "at the proper time", she will issue a more in-depth statement to the media. We hope it will come out sooner than later to give peace on the minds of its depositors. - Junard "Ahong" Chan / RBS depositor