Customs shakeup starts

MANILA, Philippines - Customs Commissioner Rufino Biazon yesterday ordered all 17 district collectors and 37 subport collectors to relinquish their posts by Monday to pave the way for a major revamp of the bureau.

Biazon issued a one-page memorandum on the “personnel movement,” stating that this was needed “in the best interest of providing service.”

As of yesterday afternoon, two collectors had complied with Biazon’s directive: Edward James Dy Buco, assigned in Davao, and Ronnie Silvestre, assigned at the Clark freeport in Pampanga.

Biazon said the memorandum was a step toward the reforms he is initiating in the Bureau of Customs (BOC).

When asked if “powerful forces” might attempt to interfere in the revamp, he said, “I hope they would take it upon themselves not to intervene.”

The district collectors are under the Office of the Commissioner, who has the authority to transfer them to other assignments.

The BOC is evaluating the performance of each of the district collectors and subport collectors.

“In the best interest of providing service, all districts and subport collectors/officers-in-charge of ports and subports are hereby directed to relinquish their current assignment or designation in writing, on or before Monday, 29 July 2013. This order is pursuant to Section 703 of the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines, as amended. All assignments or designations shall be considered relinquished upon acceptance or action by the undersigned,” the memorandum read.

The BOC chief said the reshuffle of the district collectors would depend on their performance, their ability to meet collection targets and their record of enforcements, if they have been the subject of complaints and if they have a high “level of notoriety.”

Biazon will submit the new assignments next week to Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima and the collectors will know if they will be retained in their current posts or be given new assignments. 

“Some would be immediately replaced,” Biazon said.

By law, before he can announce the collectors’ new assignments, he needs the approval of the finance secretary.

Biazon reiterated that the reshuffle of collectors would not solve the problem of smuggling and corruption. But he said having “new leaders in these collection districts will at least give a fresh start on how to institute reforms down the line.”

Lifestyle checks OK’d

Meanwhile, Malacañang approved the proposal to conduct lifestyle checks on officials of the BOC by agents of a task force under the Department of Finance.

“We have no opposition to the Revenue Integrity Protection Service carrying out their mandate,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said, referring to RIPS, a unit within the DOF, which has jurisdiction over the BOC.

Valte said that RIPS’ job or mandate has not ceased.

Valte also denied reports that dragged the name of Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa Jr. in the alleged smuggling anomalies.

She said Ochoa confirmed having recommended lawyer Peter Manzano as BOC deputy commissioner when there was a vacancy, but that this was all there was to it.

“He confirms that he was the one who recommended Manzano, but that’s it. The ES has nothing to do with any transactions, any illegal or otherwise, that have been mentioned in the course of these reports,” Valte explained.

She denied news reports that Ochoa was involved in smuggling, saying there is “no truth to that, there is no truth to that.”

In an interview, Lim said some tips about smuggling were received informally and could not be verified.

Valte said President Aquino’s action on the offer of resignation of Deputy Commissioners Danilo Lim and Lorenzo Tañada might take some time.

“Both resignations are still being processed. We have no word from the President yet on whether these two will be accepted or rejected,” she said. “Normally, we do take some time to process any resignation that is submitted.”

‘Anomalies solved soon’

 All the anomalies in the BOC will be addressed once the reform planned by the Aquino administration is carried out, the Presidential Communications Operations Office website stated Thursday.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said that drastic changes will be seen in the bureau once the government implements the reforms mentioned by Aquino in his State of the Nation Address (SONA).

“Action is being done as we speak,” Lacierda said in his regular press briefing.

In his fourth SONA last Monday, Aquino had lambasted the BOC for corruption and what he described as the incompetence of its personnel.

Biazon offered to resign but this was rejected. Lim later complained that “powerful forces” were hindering BOC operations.

Despite the administration’s thrust to clean up the bureau, goods, drugs and weapons continued to be smuggled into the country, he noted.

The DOF estimated that the government loses some P200 billion yearly as a result of rampant smuggling. With Delon Porcalla