Escudero wary of change in BOC leadership

MANILA, Philippines - Amid rumors that Bureau of Customs (BOC) Commissioner Angelito Alvarez is on his way out, Sen. Francis Escudero warned that the revenue-generating agency cannot afford to have a new leader who will need to undergo on-the-job training.

Escudero raised this concern after hearing that former Muntinlupa City Rep. Rozzano Ruffino Biazon will be replacing Alvarez.

He said corruption is so deeply entrenched in the BOC that a newcomer with no background on Customs operations could easily be manipulated by smugglers and their cohorts.

Escudero noted that the BOC, while one of the most coveted posts in the government, is also one of the hardest to manage because of the pressure of hitting revenue targets as well as the problem of corruption being institutionalized at the agency.

He said unscrupulous individuals would do everything to be appointed to the BOC, but in the case of honest officials, they would most likely end up being killed on the job.

“If you do your job there, you might even get killed. The life of a customs commissioner is under scrutiny everyday. Meaning, any time he can be removed by the President,” Escudero said.

“I just hope that whoever would replace (Alvarez), be it Congressman Biazon or some Pontius Pilate, he should already know the job and would not need to study again.”

Alvarez, who was recently under fire for the smuggling of vehicles in Mindanao and the disappearance of around 2,000 container vans, would reportedly be replaced by Biazon, but this has been denied by Malacañang.

Biazon, who took up medical technology in college, has not denied the report and merely refused to issue any comment.

Escudero said he was surprised about the questions raised against the BOC commissioner, particularly about the missing container vans, because he recalled that it was Alvarez himself who found out the shenanigans and immediately ordered an investigation on the matter.

He added that Alvarez, even with his background as the former president and COO of freight and cargo forwarding service firm Air21, had to study the operations of the customs service for several months.

“I don’t know if Congressman Biazon has any background on customs. Maybe he will be practicing there and while he is practicing, the smugglers will go on with their operations and the people within (the BOC) will just manipulate him,” Escudero said.

“It is the decision of the President but I just hope that he studies this very well because the BOC is one-third of the lifeblood of the government, two-thirds being with the BIR (Bureau of Internal Revenue),” he said, adding that the government cannot afford to lose any more revenues especially now when very little is coming in.

“If the person he (the President) will place there would fail or would have to learn the ropes first, then we might end up with a shortfall in revenues and affect the delivery of basic social services to the people,” he said.