Yearender: Change, clampdown at Customs

MANILA, Philippines - The year 2011 marked the changing of the guard at the Bureau of Customs (BOC).

Former Muntinlupa City Rep. Rozanno Rufino “Ruffy” Biazon, who ran but lost as senatorial candidate of President Aquino’s Liberal Party (LP) in the 2010 elections, admitted that he was offered the job.

Biazon mentioned in his Sept. 16 blog entitled “The Story Behind the Decision,” that it was the President who offered the position to him.

“The Customs commissioner post, even if it was a position I did not seek, a challenge that I did not consider, but now it was presented to me to accept or decline,” he said in his blog.

In the end, Biazon opted to get out of his “comfort zone” and took the challenge, believing that his experience as a three-term congressman would help him in his new job as Customs commissioner.

Three months after assuming the post, Biazon admitted that the agency’s primary role, which is collecting revenue for the government, is not doing well.

The BOC is the government’s second biggest revenue earner, after the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). It is projected to fall P60 billion short of attaining its P320-billion collection target for 2011.

The agency has often explained that reaching the collection target is a difficult task to accomplish because of the losses as a result of the continued smuggling, including foregone revenues brought about by the country’s compliance to various multilateral and bilateral free trade agreements.

“I would say that in the first three months I was able to learn the ropes in the bureau, the culture of the bureau and have seen who are the assets and the liabilities and whom I should watch (closely),” Biazon said.

Learning the ropes

While learning the ropes, he met with stakeholders, received feedback and ideas on who are the most complained about employees or officials in the agency.

Biazon informed BOC officials and personnel that he would adopt nine C’s in his leadership, namely Change, Closing loopholes, Continuity, Consultation, Computerization, Cooperation, Clamp down, Cheerleader, and Collection.

He adopted the policy of shortening the time gap between the apprehension of a smuggled cargo and the filing of cases against those responsible before the Department of Justice (DOJ).

On the top of his to-do list for 2012 is to exceed the collection target. The BOC is tasked to net P365 billion next year.

He reshuffled officials and intends to start making changes during the first quarter of next year with the hope that he would appoint the right persons to the right positions.

He also plans to strengthen and fully implement the Value Reference Information System (VRIS) of the BOC.

“Ideally, we have a database of correct and standard set of values. It is like a price tag that would serve as a reference point of the assessors to examine if value of goods were properly assessed,” Biazon said.

“So if our assessment is correct, based on the VRIS, we would already know what is the correct estimate or expected value or collection. This would leave the assessors a smaller window of flexibility for discretion,” he added.

The BOC chief said he would also be looking at other non-traditional sources of revenue such as disposing of overstaying containers. There are various items, from vehicles to perishable items, stored in some 2,000 units of container vans in different ports in the country.

There is also Post Entry Audit (PEA). At present, the BOC earns from the duties and taxes it collects once a shipment enters port and it is only then that they tighten their guard. In the PEA, they would conduct an audit on importations to determine if correct taxes and duties were paid.

Serving at the pleasure  of the President

During the first eight-and-a-half months of the year, the BOC was unable to operate to its fullest potential because then Customs Commissioner Angelito Alvarez’s term was disrupted by threats of removal from his post.

President Aquino was reportedly not happy with his performance.

In a letter he sent to the President dated Aug. 27, Alvarez said that during his stay in the BOC his hands were never tainted by corruption and that he always abided by the “matuwid na daan” (straight path) motto of the Chief Executive.

He said he believed that one of the issues that drew the ire of the President was the alleged discovery of 29 smuggled high-end cars and motorcycles from the United States by businessman Lynard Allan Bigcas. But he explained that these vehicles came in before he assumed office.

He also assured the President that the BOC under his watch was continuously fighting the proliferation of smuggled goods allegedly being sold in some shopping malls. They made successful raids, amounting to billions worth of imitation products, of warehouses being used by those who supply counterfeit goods to mall tenants.

As for the tale of the 1,910 container vans that went missing as they were being transported from the Port of Manila and the Manila International Container Port to the Port of Batangas, Alvarez argued that he was not at fault and in fact he pressed charges against those responsible.

Despite persistent rumors that he would be replaced, Alvarez never turned in his resignation. Instead, he decided to stay on until the President formally relieved him of his post and appointed Biazon.