— witsandnuts

The almost perfect and most unhuman bank robbery  in Philippine history has been bugging me for two days now.  Primarily because that bank is so dear to me and I happened to know (and probably personally met) at least two of the victims who were head shot dead.  I had bumps the first time I catched the news in TV Patrol World.  The sight of the tellers cage, the branch’s back door, etc. 

I practically spent (and enjoyed life) a number of years as a bank auditor.  Hence, I vividly remember the set up at the branches.  I knew how it was like in and out, its flaws and strengths, the beauty and challenge of a banker’s life, and many other things that made my reasoning in this field worthwhile.  It is now that I think how effective and verifiable were the Team’s recommendations on an untoward incident that a bank may face.

My dear bank has taken all the necessary preacutions and contingency planning for the branch in particular.  But it is at this point that I can see my auditee/s arguing with me (and finally proven his point) that whatever precaution has been placed – alarms, closed circuit cameras, insurance, training, etc. , there would always be occurrences that are beyond the branch personnel’s control.  I always insisted on mitigating controls.  But, what the heck can I recommend more when the roberry is perfectly planned!  Whether it was an inside job or not, it is too good to be true for the robbers to have known how to get rid off the closed circuit televisions and alarms automatically linked to police stations, etc.  Knock, knock, mitigating controls.  What about? and not who.  Too good as an execution, to horrible to kill someone, to unhuman to take the lives of all the branch personnel and a depositor’s representative.

A special audit related to this would be (is being) conducted soon.  I just can imagine what my friends cum seasoned auditors previous officemates are going through right now.  Not to mention the eerie environment that the branch has.  That is absolutely surpassing my Cotabato branch assignment in 2003 – each waking moment then I thanked God more that there were no bullets that came our way.  Well, that’s another story.

Scary, it is.  All branch personnel (plus a depositor’s representative), head shot dead.  What a morbid revamp.  I am hoping that justice would grace the scenario soon.  Let’s pray for the victims and their beloved families to be at their strongest and most forgiving state (though it is in its most impossible stage right now).   It would be unbearable to shiver during cash count and audit fieldwork sooner or later as the auditors see and feel traces of them.  Lucky you if you don’t have a third eye.   Scary.