THE Bureau of Customs Employees Association (BOCEA), the recognized union of all customs employees in the country, has tweaked agency officials over their alleged continued silence in the wake of three incidents of gun attacks thus far in the last two months that targeted customs employees that resulted to the death of a senior customs appraiser and the serious wounding of two others.
In a statement sent to Pinoy Exposé, the union, headed by Pres. Rommel Francisco, bewailed that since the last incident last January 14, 2022 that nearly killed the target, Port of Manila principal examiner, Ryan Balite Difuntorum, customs officials, including Comm. Rey Leonardo Guerrero, has not issued a statement condemning the violent attacks against customs personnel by the still unidentified motorcycle-riding suspects.
“We…condemn the lackadaisical attitude of the Commissioner and other high officials of the Bureau of Customs in responding to the violence.
“To date, the Commissioner of Customs (Guerrero) has not given a statement condemning the criminal acts,” BOCEA said.
Prior to the gun attack against Difuntorum in Sampaloc, Manila (see also Pinoy Expose, Volume 3, Issue No. 3), Eudes Nerpio, a chief appraiser at the Manila International Container Port (MICP), died from an assassin’s bullet while his vehicle was parked at Plaza Cervantes, Binondo, Manila last January 7, 2022 (see also Pinoy Exposé, Volume 3, Issue No. 1/2).
Prior to this, BOCEA noted that last December, before Christmas, Atty. Melvin Tan, assigned at the office of Deputy Commissioner for Internal Administration (IAG) Donato San Juan, was ambushed in Las Piñas City while also on his way home.
Tan sustained 7 gunshot wounds but luckily survived, the union noted.
Incidentally, all the victims are included in a so-called ‘BOC Corrupt List’ that contained 14 names.
The list was forwarded to Guerrero and the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC) last November 29, 2021.
“We seek justice to (the) senseless killing of Eudes Nerpio and the attempted murders of Messrs Melvin Tan and Ryan Difuntorum.
“The leadership of the Bureau must lead in the identification of the gunmen and bringing them to court along with the masterminds,” BOCEA said.
“If the perpetrators are not brought to justice, then the customs leadership should share the blame for failing to protect its employees.
“The whole BOC community enjoin all law enforcement agencies to catch the perpetrators and (for) the Committee on Human Rights of both Houses of Congress to conduct a thorough investigation on this matter so that the crimes will not remain unsolved and be relegated to the countless piles of unsolved crimes,” the statement added.