LAKAS Rep. Magtanggol T. Gunigundo I of Valenzuela City has called for a congressional inquiry into the reported smuggling of 14 luxury cars from the United Arab Emirates, Japan and Hong Kong at the Batangas port.
In House Resolution 2269, Gunigundo asked the House Committee on Ways and Means to investigate certain importers’ modus operandi of undervaluing luxury cars by declaring them as vehicles of lower-priced models or variants.
The call for investigation was prompted by the Bureau of Customs’ (BOC) seizure of a shipment of luxury cars at the Asian Terminal Container Port in Batangas on July 24.
Gunigundo said that the consignee could be in cahoots with certain BOC officials. The vehicles were consigned to Monacat Trading in Biñan, Laguna.
“There are car importers who misdeclare or undervalue their importations because of the costly duties and taxes attached to cars being imported,” Gunigundo said.
Gunigundo said the importer of these luxury vehicles was trying to cheat the government. “The modus operandi is to undervalue the cars by declaring lower-model or lower-variant names,” he said.