BOC investigates Southern Cross Cement for possible smuggling, undervaluation of imports

Southern Cross Cement Corp. (SCCC), which recently won a major victory in the Supreme Court (SC) against the imposition of safeguard measures against imported cement, is being investigated anew by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) for possible smuggling, misdeclaration and under-valuation of its recent cement exports this year.

The BOC’s is investigating alleged undervaluation of SCCC’s import entry declarations resulting in the possible avoidance of the payment of some P6 million in customs taxes and P18 million in value-added taxes (VAT) amounting to P24 million.

Likewise, the BOC is also looking into alleged misdeclaration of SCCC’s imports using the transaction value method and alleged withdrawal of 46,000 tons of cement without the proper authorization from the BOC which would then be tantamount to smuggling.

The BOC’s attention was called last April by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s industry commodity expert for cement Bonifacio De Castro Juson who had noted the unusually low freight rates being used by SCCC which affects the freight valuation of the cement shipment.

SCCC, in defense, claims that the rates it is using are the same since 1998.

Likewise, it denied allegations of smuggling, explaining that its shipment withdrawals were allowed by the BOC on a "tentative release subject to liquidation."

However, according to Angelito R. Mendoza, observer of the Cabinet Oversight Committee Against Smuggling and a member of the Presidential Anti-Smuggling Taskforce, the BOC is to be commended for its effort in preventing smuggling, misdeclaration and undervation.

According to Mendoza, misdeclaration and undervaluation would result in cheaper imported cement prices to the detriment of local cement which become more expensive.