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The Minister of Justice of the interim government, Marie Claude Najm, confirmed in an interview with Forbes Middle East, that the Central Bank of Lebanon, like any other team, is obliged to cooperate with the criminal scrutiny, because it is the decision of the Lebanese state, represented by the government, and is binding on all.
Najm said: “If the forensic audit is not carried out, this means that there is no truth and no recovery of the stolen money. The enormous amount of losses suffered by the Lebanese state will be borne by the entire Lebanese people and therefore, Lebanon will not receive support from the International Monetary Fund or donors from the international community. ” Najm stressed that auditing means the transparency that civil society and all people demand, highlighting that this is a file for people who have the right to know how money has evaporated.
No confidentiality on state funds
The Justice Minister appealed to the Central Council of the Banque du Liban, which will meet tomorrow to discuss the file, govern its conscience and make a decision in cooperation with the audit, and if the council decides to obstruct, “I hold its members collectively responsible before the government, public opinion and history. “
Najm continued: “Today was the last date for the Alvarez & Marsal company to deliver the necessary documents to start the criminal audit process, and as I was informed, the Bank of Lebanon will hold a meeting tomorrow of its central council to decide on the matter. . The criminal audit company has all the necessary documents. “
He also clarified that, on the basis of this book, President Hassan Diab sent a letter to the Minister of Finance and the Governor of the Banque du Liban to comply with the content of the contract and its implementation.
Najm stressed that the invocation of bank secrecy aims to dilute scrutiny, noting that there is no secrecy about state funds, since public money is exposed to everyone, and in return it is the government itself that requests audits of its accounts. As for the other accounts, the company requested to be encrypted without revealing the names.
The audit continues
Najm clarified that the audit should affect the accounts and activities of Banque du Liban. Was it against the law? How was the procedure performed? How were the risks managed? Were the Lebanese provisions taken into account? …
He stressed that this information will be delivered to the Lebanese state, and the company will not publish it or circulate it elsewhere, and the Lebanese state acts based on the data that the company will disclose, and then forwards the file to regulatory and legal agencies.
Najm concluded by saying: So far, the audit is still ongoing, and we will do our best to keep it from flying.
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