MANILA, Philippines - “Never entrust your balikbayan boxes to fly-by-night cargo forwarders, especially those who dangle deals that are too good to be true.â€
United Nationalist Alliance senatorial bet Jack Enrile offered this advice to overseas Filipino workers, as he called on them to heed the Department of Trade and Industry’s directive to transact only with cargo forwarders accredited by the Philippine Shippers’ Bureau to ensure the safety of their packages.
“Expensive jewelry and foreign currency placed in chocolate boxes, Christmas decorations, even health insurance documents and personal letters to family members wind up in stalls in tiangges (flea markets) and other shops. These incidents are all too common already,†said Enrile, who called for more stringent policies against bogus cargo forwarding firms.