The United States on Monday slapped sanctions in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Associate from the British Israeli investor and Gertler as the administration of President Joe Biden released a new global anti-corruption strategy.
The US Ministry of Finance said Alain Mukonda helped regulate the Gertler business and transferred millions of dollars for him after the oil and mining business of Tycoon Israel in DRC was limped by previous sanctions.
Mukonda established a company for Gertler and moved between $ 11 million and $ 13.5 million into it, said Treasury, helping Gertler Skirt sanctions aimed at blocking him to access the global financial system.
“Treasury is committed to supporting the Democratic Republic of Congo’s anti-corruption efforts by pursuing those who abuse the political system for economic benefits and unfair profit from the Congo state,” said Deputy Deputy Treasury Adeyemo in a statement.
The announcement came when the White House launched the “First US government strategy about corruption against”.
The core objective of the strategy, which comes ahead of the International Anti-Corruption Day on Thursday, is to tighten the regulations regarding US real estate transactions to prevent them from being used to wash money obtained through trade, embezzlement or bribery.
It also aims to increase financial transparency by identifying better those behind shells or front companies.
“As a fundamental threat to the rule of law, corruption pierces the institution, undermining public trust, and popular fuel of cynicism towards effective governance,” said the strategy document.
“Corruption seizes residents from the same access to vital services, deny the right to the quality of health care, public safety, and education.
It reduces the business environment, undermines economic opportunities, and exacerbates inequality.” Congress issued a law in January which requires US companies to declare their owners to benefit them to the federal government.
It marks a breakthrough in the United States, where the law on this problem is very flexible, especially in Delaware, the origin of Biden.
The White House wants to set up real estate transactions better, especially when made in cash.
“With the United States is the largest economy in the world, we understand that we bear special responsibilities to fulfill our own rules deficiency,” said a senior administrative official.
In a report published in August, Washington Think Tank Global Financial Integrity (GFI) estimates that in the past five years, at least $ 2.3 billion gross money has been washed through real estate transactions in the United States.
“But the US remains the only G7 country that does not require real estate professionals to comply with the law laundering anti-money laws and regulations,” he said.
Sanctions against Mukonda are part of the US efforts that foster the main figures whose alleged corruption inhibits development in poor countries.
Gertler, a close friend of former President DRC Joseph Kabila, was first approved by the United States in 2017 for allegedly deceiving a state of around $ 1.4 billion in revenues through opaque mining offers.
With Mukonda, 46 people and entities on the Gertler network have been placed on the US treasury blacklist.
The treasury said “committed to ensuring that Gertler cannot corrupt get profit from access and sustainable influence in DRC and globally.” The treasury added that he planned to announce a series of sanctions this week in the lead on International Anti-Corruption Day and, on Friday, international human rights day.
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