Cebu Car smuggling: Heads of 4 agencies sought in probe

A party-list lawmaker wants the heads of four interconnected agencies to appear before the House committee on good government to shed light on the syndicated, multibillion-peso smuggling of luxury vehicles in Cebu.

Rep. Teddy Casino of Bayan Muna said he has relayed his suggestion to Camiguin Rep. Pedro Romualdo, who heads the panel, to invite Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group (PASG) chief Antonio Villar, former Land Transportation Office (LTO) chief Reynaldo Berroya, Customs chief Napoleon Morales and Transportation and Communications Secretary Leandro Mendoza.

“The Cebu car smuggling mafia involves top-level officials from Metro Manila. But in yesterday’s hearing, nobody (among) the resource persons invited could even disclose findings or conclusions on their probe on the smuggling activities in Cebu,” he said.

He issued the statement in the light of conflicting positions taken by the PASG, which hinted that there is rampant car smuggling in Cebu, and LTO officials who said that there was none. Customs officials, meanwhile, were tight-lipped.

Casino said there is a need to summon Villar, Berroya, Morales and Mendoza because the people who attended yesterday’s hearing kept mum and appeared to have no knowledge about the car smuggling in Cebu.