By Rea Cu & Elijah Felice E. Rosales
AMID a verbal presidential order to let the military take over its operations to stop corruption and the repeated smuggling of illegal drugs, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) reported on Wednesday that its collections as of October 29 this year have reached P481.72 billion, higher by 31.3 percent than last year’s end-October collection of P366.74 billion.
At turnover rites at the BOC headquarters, outgoing Customs Commissioner Isidro S. Lapeña reported that, “Based on the latest preliminary record of the BOC financial service, from January to October 29, 2018, the bureau has already exceeded its collection target for the period” by P15.03 billion.
The preliminary figure was also pointed out to have breached the bureau’s target collection for the 10-month period of P466.69 billion.
The BOC’s collection from January 1 to October 29 this year already represents 82.9 percent of the collection target for 2018, according to Lapeña, whom the President “promoted” to a Cabinet rank position as director general of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) following his admission, that, indeed, the magnetic lifters discovered in a Cavite warehouse had been used to smuggle in shabu, with a worth variously estimated from P6.8 billion to P11 billion.
Lapeña turned over the helm of the BOC on Wednesday to another retired military general, Rey Leonardo B. Guerrero, who had a successful stint as chief regulator at the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina), after he stepped down as chief of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
“I am sure the incoming Customs leadership will be able to achieve the remaining collection in order to hit the 2018 target,” Lapeña said of his successor, who in turn assured the mainly civilian work force at the country’s second-biggest revenue agency that they will keep their jobs but that he hoped they could all work together with him to prove that corruption is not the norm at the bureau.
Business assured
In a related development, Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said President Duterte’s plan to militarize the BOC will not hamper the flow of goods in ports, and could even lead to smoother trade procedures.
In a statement, Lopez told businesses not to worry about any delays in the shipment of their goods if the administration of the BOC is handed over to the military. The President has been flirting with the idea of turning over customs regulation to the country’s armed forces.
He was disgusted with how things are going in the BOC, following a dispute between the regulator and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency over the entry of up to P11 billion of crystal meth in the Port of Manila.
Lopez, for his part, said militarizing the BOC could prove to be necessary to address corruption in the agency. “I believe in the wisdom of the President, applying new laws to solve perennial problems,” he argued.
“If you try applying [the] same solutions to [the] same old problems, something must be wrong. It’s the President’s unique approach to old problems [corruption in the BOC],” Lopez added.
The trade chief also believes the armed forces might make customs procedures more seamless, as they are expected to cut red tape and eliminate corruption in the agency.
Lopez argued, “I believe [the] military will be there to help in the enforcement and adding better controls, lessening or eliminating corruption without affecting the smoother workflow and processing of documents in the BOC. According to DOF [Department of Finance], the efficient and honest work force familiar in the operations will continue to be there.”
Worries over the arrival and delivery of shipments piled up over the past days, as the BOC was placed in hot water due to the smuggling of crystal meth, which resulted in Duterte reorganizing the agency. However, his plan to place the BOC under military control caused fears that shipments might be delayed during the holiday season.
Collection target
ACCORDING to the BOC its collection target for 2018 was set at P581.291 billion. The BOC will have to collect around P99.57 billion for the remaining two months of the year to hit its annual collection target or at least P49.78 billion each month.
For October alone, collections of the bureau was reported to be around P47.10 billion as of October 29, which is 9.7 percent higher than the recorded P42.91 billion recorded in October 2017. But compared to its collection target for the month of P49.06 billion, the preliminary collection is still lower by 4.2 percent.
In his farewell speech, Lapeña said, “I will request the incoming commissioner, Rey Guerrero to work out the rewards that the bureau employees lawfully deserve if the BOC exceeds its target for this year.”
In accepting the role, Guerrero said, “Today, as I accept responsibility of leading the BOC, I commit to serve with purpose and effectively. For this designation I thank the President for his continued trust and confidence in my abilities to lead the team, guided by his directive to initiate reforms and cleanse the agency of corruption.”
Guerrero added, “As I take the helm of the BOC, expect that the efforts against corruption will be both decisive and unrelenting as I focus on addressing systemic weaknesses, implementing stronger internal safeguards, enhancing integrity systems, and building capabilities and capacities of our law enforcement.”
On the President’s directive to replace BOC personnel with uniformed armed personnel to rid the agency of corruption, Guerrero said there is no militarization as the majority of the employees of the BOC will still run the bureau.
“The directive of the President to have military people…clearly the officers of the BOC will still be in control of the operations. We will have to assess the situation and decide appropriately,” he said.
“We must regain the trust of those whom we serve, and we start by building trust between and among us. I need to be able to trust every single member in the BOC, to be honest and upright, and each of you needs to trust me in my commitment and capacity to lead with integrity. Trust works both ways and by believing our mutual goals and singular dedication to serve our country and our people, we will have enough visions and motivation to change old ways and make way for better service,” he added.