The 2.5 billion dollar question!
The 2.5billion dollars in overseas bank accounts – The Argument has just began
‘The people newspaper of the ruling Seychelles People’s Progressive Front (SPPF), issue 22nd May 2009, stretched the debate on the 2.5 billion dollars in foreign bank accounts and linked to Seychellois companies and individuals.
The People said “bring back the 2.5 bn”, after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission Chief Paul Mathieu pointed out that the source of the money from Seychelles was legitimate and therefore no basis for investigation into fund embezzlement.
Both the opposition and ruling party had tried to exploit the foreign accounts.
The reality is that no government can force the owners of the foreign accounts to bring their money to Seychelles, especially at a time when the country has been liberated from confidence-sapping controls.
People will voluntarily bring their dollars, euros and pound sterlings to Seychelles when conditions favour the transfer. Now the conditions are good, or even better than overseas. Not all savings accounts overseas earn interest. In Seychelles it is presently 6%. Accounts holders are also safe in Seychelles, away from the credit that has hit the world economy’.
Isola Bella – page 3 – June 2009
Bring back the $2.5 bn
‘....The $2.5 billion represents a capital flight, meaning money which has left the country over the last couple of years. They have been deposited in banks accounts overseas by residents of Seychelles who are either individuals or companies….’
The People – front page article – 4th paragraph – May 22 2009
2.5 Billion US$ Overseas Cleared…..
‘It has been a while since the opposition has on each and every given occasion, been attempting to make political mileage out of the 2.5 billion US$ worth overseas accounts said to be kept by Seychellois nationals in different banks around the globe. Despite repeated clarifications from the government through its Finance Minister, Mr. Danny Faure and the IMF head delegate Mr. Mathieu, that the money belongs to Seychellois businessmen and individuals…………’
The Rising Sun – page 4 – Tuesday, June 2, 2009
The 2.5billion dollars in overseas bank accounts – The Argument has just began
The above are extracts from the local printing media commenting on the recent acceptance by President Michel, Minister Faure and other government officials that the 2.5 billion dollars in overseas bank accounts does belong to Seychellois, individuals and companies residing in Seychelles. However, the argument on this matter is not over by far. In fact it has just begun. The jury is still out on this one - that is despite the numerous representations being made on behalf of this government by The Rising Sun, The People, Isola Bella and others. They are clamouring over each other to defend theft from the people of this country on a grand scale.
Finally, they have all accepted without exception - including President Michel and the Minister for Finance, Danny Faure, that the 2.5billion dollars in foreign bank accounts does belong to the local population, individuals and Seychellois companies. This is something they all denied with a passion on the outset, when this newspaper first broke this news in our September 19th 2008, Issue No. 2. Who was it who said that “time will tell”, yes indeed “time always do tell” – only this time it took eight months for them to come clean.
Now that they have accepted that this money was money earned here or taken illegally out of the Seychelles economy, we need to start the process of bringing back this money to the islands so that the people can have their lives restored to an acceptable level. For all intents and purposes this money has been stolen from the people of this country. In fact certain honest citizens were forced into that situation as a result of the bad policies put in place by the former SPPF now masquerading as ‘Parti Lepep’ – “Tir dan labarb met dan moustas tousala plim menm”. We all know who you are. The same group of thieves, who contributed immensely in stealing from the people day in and day out. Now come clean you scoundrels…..
Source: LNSW 6-22-09