EDITORIAL - Get the smugglers

These were the ones that didn’t get away. Members of the Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group announced yesterday the confiscation of 81 luxury vehicles with a combined value of P200 million from a service shop in Makati. The PASG said the vehicles were smuggled; owners of some of the luxury vehicles, among them San Juan Mayor J.V. Ejercito, said the vehicles were brought in legally. Ejercito, a son of former President Joseph Estrada, has been asked to produce the documents for his vehicles.

The PASG seized a Lambor-ghini, 21 BMWs, 16 Mercedes Benzes, 11 Porsches, four Jaguars, three Volvos, and several Ferraris, Carrera, Boxter, Land Cruisers, Range Rovers, Cherokee and an Austin Mini Cooper. PASG officials said the Lamborghini was not covered by proper documents and bore license plates registered for a multi-cab or Asian utility vehicle in Cebu.

It has long been suspected that vehicle smuggling cannot thrive without the connivance of government officials and employees. Customs and port personnel wave through smuggled shipments; the hot vehicles are then given license plates and bogus registration papers by corrupt transportation personnel. In some cases, local politicians and even police and military officers are involved in smuggling activities, bringing in not just luxury vehicles but also motorcycles and food items including vegetables.

Since its creation several months ago, the PASG has made an impressive effort to carry out its mandate. But the public will be even more impressed if smugglers and their coddlers will be identified and prosecuted. To this day the public still doesn’t know the individuals behind the smuggling of luxury vehicles through the Subic Bay free port. That kind of illegal activity cannot flourish without the imprimatur of people in power. Perhaps the PASG will have better luck identifying those who smuggled the vehicles confiscated in Makati.