Apology

July 13, 2024 10:09 pm | Posted in Business News | Share now TwitterFacebook

In our Friday 12 July 2024 edition, under an article headed “Acting Director clarifies FIU’s direction on RBV Governor”, we published an article based on information provided to us by the Acting Director of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) Mr. Josiah Kuatpen.

We have since learnt that Mr. Kuatpen was very selective in the information that he provided to us.

We acknowledge the provisions of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing (AML & CTF) Act provisions that are set out in the article which refer to the role of the FIU in assessing whether key persons in reporting entities are fit and proper.

We accept that Mr. Kuatpen decided to direct the Reserve Bank of Vanuatu (RBV) to remove Mr. Letlet as Governor as he decided that Mr. Letlet was not fit and proper and that he wrote to the Reserve Bank on 4 June 2024 with the intention to have Mr. Letlet removed as the Governor of the RBV.

However such a direction could not become effective before 12 June 2024. We have since learned that on 7 June 2024 Mr. Letlet lodged a challenge on Mr. Kuatpen’s decision in the Supreme Court and heard argument by all parties about whether the direction could be carried into effect. Following a hearing the Supreme Court ordered on 11 June 2024 that the letter of 4 June 2024 directed to the RBV was set aside and was ordered to be “of no effect”.

We have also learned that Mr. Kuatpen had earlier given a direction to the RBV on 13 May 2024 purporting to limit the powers and functions of Mr. Letlet as Governor of the Reserve Bank. By the same Court Orders in the Supreme Court made on 11 June 2024, the FIU was directed to withdraw that direction to the RBV.

Contrary to the Court’s Orders that direction was not withdrawn by the Acting Director Mr. Kuatpen until 4 July 2024, over 3 weeks after he was ordered to withdraw it immediately.

Based on the orders made in the Supreme Court proceedings between Mr. Letlet and the FIU, we accept that there are no restrictions on the powers and functions of Mr. Letlet as the Governor of the Reserve Bank and that the FIU is expressly restrained from from issuing any directives to the RBV purporting to place any limitations or restrictions on the performance by Mr. Letlet of his duties and carrying out his functions as Governor of the RBV.

We are sorry that the story conveyed the impression that Mr. Letlet was acting in contravention of directions of the FIU or that the RBV was failing to carry out directions of the FIU. We now understand that there are no operative directions from the FIU relating to the role and the powers and functions of Mr. Letlet as the Governor of the Reserve Bank.

We apologise sincerely to Mr. Letlet for any alternative impression that may have been created by our article.

We also accept that the article also misrepresented the nature of litigation between the Vanuatu National Provident Fund (VNPF) and the FIU in 2022, which was in fact concerned with whether the VNPF was a reporting entity for the purposes of the AML & CTF Act.