Dictators Fight to Retain Secret Banking in Switzerland

Third World dictators, politicians and government officials yesterday vowed to fight plans by the Swiss authorities, to outlaw secret banking in Switzerland. Bowing to renewed pressure from US government, Swiss Authorities issued a fresh directive to Swiss Banks to emphasise America’s determination to freeze accounts belonging to terrorist organisations.

Under the directive, first issued in the wake of the September 11 events, Swiss banks are asked to reveal the names of their depositors so the American government and its agents can determine which ones belong to terrorist organisations.

However, the Banks can continue to take money from corrupt leaders and officials of poor countries, provided such monies are verified to have been genuinely stolen from their governments’ coffers and details of the transactions passed to the American government.
Swiss Banks must not take money from any other sources unless cleared by the American government. Failure to comply would force the Swiss authorities to “name and shame” recalcitrant banks.

Responding to the directive, a retired General in Abuja, Nigeria, said although it favours the likes of him, it is not fair that a third party, like the US government should be involved. He said the move would force depositors to retain their money in their countries. “For me, Nigeria is not a safe place to keep that kind of money. There’s too much dishonesty, corruption and armed robbery. You cannot even trust any of our banks to look after your money.”

The General explained that spending such money to set up industries and create jobs in Nigeria is not a good idea either. He said Nigerians would fleece people like him on the excuse that the money was stolen in the first place.

He added: “You can’t even do anything monumental with the money in your country, as it would always remind you of the origin of the money. That’s why we prefer to lock it up in Switzerland or invest it abroad.”

He urged the Swiss Authorities to reconsider their decision, so thousands of depositors can have peace of mind. He said they should remember that without these deposits, Switzerland would be worse off economically than the worst of the Third World countries.