Ex-Cebu customs collector, 2 others cleared of graft raps

CEBU, Philippines - The Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas has upheld the dismissal of the anti-graft case against the late Cebu Customs District Collector Billy Bibit and two other customs officials for lack of evidence.

Graft investigator Llorene Grace Ompod found no evidence to reverse an earlier decision that cleared Bibit, customs examiner Eunice Aguilar and Intelligence Officer Troy Tan of the graft charges filed by Selpha Trinidad.

Trinidad sought for the reconsideration of the dismissal of her complaint alleging that the anti-graft office erred in dismissing her case. Trinidad claimed that the Ombudsman has initially found probable cause against the respondents but the final resolution absolved them.

“In its assailed order, this office premised the reversal on the mistaken notion that the acts of the respondents were in the exercise of seizure proceedings which they could rightfully undertake in the absence of the Valuation and Classification Review Committee (VCRC) case,” the order reads.

Trinidad accused the customs officials of acting in bad faith when they issued a warrant of seizure and detention against her shipment of 2,740 bags of Canadian wheat and soya products.

But the respondents said there were four grounds why the shipment was seized in favor of the government. The customs officials said the shipment has no corresponding bureau of customs import entry and internal revenue declaration.

The shipment was likewise misclassified with 57.143 percentage discrepancy, undervaluation by more than 30 percent such that declared transaction value and a prima facie evidence of fraud as penalized under Section 2530 of the Tariff and Customs Code.

According to the anti-graft body, the respondents were just acting within the bounds of their function.

“Based on the evidence, the respondents have sufficiently shown that they had not acted with manifest partiality neither with evident bad faith nor with gross inexcusable negligence.” — (FREEMAN)