Ex-solon dismisses BOC anti-smuggling effort

P2.5 billion ‘fake goods’ seized in Pasay warehouse

On Nov 22, 2021

After his warning that the agriculture department’s (DA) insistence on putting a price cap on the price of pork meat would result to a ‘pork holiday’ came true, former AGAP partylist representative and Pork Producers Federation of the Philippines vice president, Nicanor Briones, warned the country is facing a food supply crisis by next year unless the DA reverses its policy of more importation coupled with drastic reduction on the tariff rate of imported meat (photo grab from NPC media forum last March 12, 2021).

A FORMER member of Congress and known anti-smuggling advocate downplayed the anti-smuggling campaign of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) even as another raid at a storage facility in Pasay City last Friday, November 19, 2021, resulted to the confiscation of an assortment of alleged fake consumer products valued at more than P2.5 billion.

Intelligence Group (IG) deputy commissioner, Rainier Ramiro, in a report to Comm. Rey Leonardo Guerrero, said raided was the ‘One Logistics Center’ along Taft Avenue Extension with the assistance from elements from the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

Ramiro said found inside the premises are suspected fake brands of Christian Dior, Gucci, Channel, Louis Vuitton, and Fendi, to name a few.

He added that an investigation is ongoing to unmask those behind the smuggling attempt prior to the filing of appropriate charges.

But for former AGAP (Agricultural Sector Alliance of the Philippines) partylist president and former House representative, Nicanor Briones, the BOC campaign is “not serious enough” in the absence of those charged for large-scale smuggling, particularly of agricultural products, which is already a non-bailable offense under the law.

During the ‘Meet the Press/Report to the Nation’ media forum of the National Press Club (NPC) also last November 19, Briones noted he is yet to see a “big-time smuggler” sent to jail for violating RA 10845 that he co-authored in Congress.

RA 10845, labeled as tantamount to “economic sabotage” the large-scale smuggling of agricultural products or those valued at more than P1 million.

Section 3 of the law states the following: “Large-Scale Agricultural Smuggling as Economic Sabotage. – The crime of large-scale agricultural smuggling as economic sabotage, involving sugar, corn, pork, poultry, garlic, onion, carrots, fish, and cruciferous vegetables, in its raw state, or which have undergone the simple processes of preparation or preservation for the market, with a minimum amount of one million pesos (P1,000,000.00), or rice, with a minimum amount of ten million pesos (P10,000,000.00), as valued by the Bureau of Customs (BOC)…”

Briones in particular, was reacting to the news that the BOC, last November 18, 2021, yet again foiled the simultaneous smuggling of red onions, carrots and other agricultural products at the Port of Cagayan de Oro and the Port of Subic (see related story in this issue).

“Oh, sino na mga hinuli d’yan? Ano bang kaso ang isinampa? Bakit hindi (RA 10845) ang ginamit,” Briones said.

“Meron na tayong batas pero nababalewala dahil hindi naman ipinatutupad ng maayos,” Briones added.