Laundering flood money and what’s next for UPLB?

In Norway some years back, at a money-changing counter at the airport upon arrival, the teller turned down our group of all Filipinos. He refused to take our dollars and change them to the local currency.

The Philippines, he reminded us then, was still on the list of money launderers. We managed to finally exit the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force gray list last year.

That experience at the airport in Oslo was embarrassing but it was almost trivial compared to what our hard-working overseas Filipinos experienced when we were on the FATF gray list – the high cost of sending money to the Philippines and the increased scrutiny.

Now, seeing how much money was stolen through flood-control kickbacks, it’s surprising we even made it out of the gray list, which identifies countries that have deficiencies in fighting money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing.

I wouldn’t be surprised if our country finds itself falling back onto the FATF list again.

This is where the government, through the Anti-Money Laundering Council, must step up the fight against this crime of cleaning dirty money.

This is one way to prevent our elected politicians from stealing public funds.

The AMLC must go after those who helped launder the billions of kickbacks in maletas upon maletas.

There are many low-key individuals but are actually very instrumental in cleaning money for the famous and the infamous, sources said.

Who is this launderer?

In the business grapevine, for instance, there’s wild talk that an Indian-Filipino businessman has been laundering money for high-profile individuals.

This individual’s business has been previously linked to some lawmakers allegedly involved in the flood-control mess, but the individual has denied such ties.

In any case, the AMLC must look into how the whole systemic kickbacks scheme happened with the help of professional launderers.

Let’s take the case against former House speaker Martin Romualdez filed by the Office of the Ombudsman before the Sandiganbayan.

According to the charges, Romualdez received cash deliveries from Zaldy Co’s personnel at least 15 times from September 2022 until 2025.

This was for the monthly P2-billion quota or collection imposed by Romualdez on Co, according to the Office of the Ombudsman’s Sept. 7 briefer.

Nearly P5 billion from the amassed funds was used by Romualdez to establish various shell or dummy companies, such as Golden Pheasant Holdings Corp., Braavos Holdings OPC and Valiant Consolidated Resources Inc. Money was purportedly exchanged into other currencies with the help of Felicito Guevarra, who owns a foreign exchange company, according to the briefer.

The various shell companies served as a channel to transfer the money around and allow Romualdez to acquire other properties, companies and assets. These include a property on Tamarind Road in Forbes Park, Makati, valued at P1.5 billion, as well as the house on Narra St. in Forbes Park purchased by Trans Middle East, a corporation owned by the Romualdez family, the Office of the Ombudsman also said.

To be fair to the AMLC, it has already frozen the assets of many lawmakers, including Romualdez.

But what is also needed is to follow the money trail and go after those helping in the whole laundering process – lawyers, money changers and lenders. They are the ones who clean dirty money for politicians.

This is what the AMLC must do with fervor. Otherwise, stealing taxpayers’ money through kickbacks will be too easy for lawmakers and politicians, easier than their real jobs.

What’s next for UP Los Baños?

From a national scandal, allow me to move to campus politics.

All eyes will be on the University of the Philippines’ Board of Regents as it selects the next UP Los Baños chancellor on Sept. 24.

The choice before them extends far beyond an administrative assignment.

I am not from UPLB but I have visited the campus many times and have seen its progress.

As most of us know, UPLB is the nation’s premier engine for agricultural research, food security and climate resilience.

It houses an unmatched concentration of scientific talent charged with solving some of the country’s most pressing systemic crises.

Given the magnitude of that mandate, the defining variable in this selection process is time.

A UP chancellor serves a three-year term and in university governance, three years can pass in a flash.

When a new leader takes office, the inevitable learning curve can take months. After all, one needs to settle down, navigate the administrative maze, establish rapport and, most importantly, understand complex projects.

Most candidates bring valid qualifications but immediate readiness is equally important.

Maintaining momentum

This is where a good incumbent is ideal.

Having led UPLB for the past six years with zeal and competence, incumbent Chancellor Prof. Jose Camacho Jr. or Chancy Dong brings an established understanding of the university’s operational terrain.

During a period marked by expanding international academic partnerships and the establishment of high-level facilities such as the KOICA genetics research center, maintaining established momentum is critical.

Ideally, capitalizing on these complex global research linkages requires leadership that is already active within those networks.

As such, the Board of Regents faces a fundamental question: should UPLB press pause to allow for an administrative transition, or should it maintain its current trajectory without losing a single day?

The question comes at a critical time for our country when it is facing a food security issue and a changing climate.

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Email: [email protected]. Follow her on X @eyesgonzales. Column archives at EyesWideOpen on FB.