NTA board nixes ‘Siapno ruling’

The board of directors of the National Tobacco Administration (NTA) chaired by Agriculture Secretary Luis Lorenzo has nullified the controversial Siapno "ruling" that had allegedly triggered massive importations of leaf tobacco and tobacco products.

Earlier, the Philippine Association of Tobacco-Based Cooperatives (PATCO) submitted a petition to Lorenzo bewailing the importations which it said left much of the local tobacco produce to waste and farmers flat broke for lack of buyers.

The NTA board, in a meeting at the Department of Agriculture last Wednesday, declared the Siapno "ruling" illegal as it authorized the NTA administrator to make representations with the Bureau of Customs.

The Siapno ruling emanated from a memorandum of past NTA Administrator Amante Siapno to the Customs commissioner stating that the latter may allow tobacco companies to import blending tobacco and tobacco products without the previously required certificate of authority to import.

The certificate of authority to import was a documentary requirement which a tobacco company must first secure from NTA before it can proceed to import.

It was learned that Siapno’s voluntary waiving of that requirement was made in light of RA 8178 which had firmed up the country’s membership with WTO-GATT.

Siapno’s memorandum dated April 23, 1998 said: "In line with RA8178 which automatically lifts quantitative restrictions on the importation of foreign blending tobacco, our old laws, rules/regulations are now inapplicable and inconsistent with RA8178.

"With this development, any request for a certificate of authority to import foreign blending tobacco or tobacco products becomes a surplusage as it is contradictory to the country’s commitments and obligations under WTO-GATT."

PATCO president Carlos Cachola claimed, in their petition that Siapno "overstretched" his interpretation of RA8178. "The law did not remove NTA’s authority over the importation schemes of the tobacco companies," Cachola said.

The Lorenzo-led NTA board agreed with Cachola that Siapno was not directed by the NTA board to issue the ruling nor did his action have the board’s approval. "This is void, illegal, and without any legal effect," it said.

Henceforth, NTA’s authority to screen importations by requiring companies to apply for import authority or commodity clearance was restored with the NTA board’s action.

"We will not budge," Lorenzo told the board. A schedule of charges which includes the payment to NTA of fees for every kilo of imported shipment was drafted.

With stricter requirements in place with the new ruling, the importations will be reduced, it was learned.