BOC orders 100% examination on reefer vans

MANILA, Philippines - All refrigerated containers or reefer vans will now be placed on full examination in a bid to prevent technical smuggling of agricultural products in the country, the Bureau of Customs (BoC) said Thursday. BOC Deputy Commissioner Celso Templo, the chief of the agency's Intelligence and Enforcement Group (IEG), issued a memorandum that places reefer vans under 100 percent examination. The deputy commissioner has tapped the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS) and the Enforcement and Security Service on lookout for the reefer vans. "All refrigerated containers should be open without necessarily waiting for the importers to file the entry. This will prevent smugglers of agricultural produced to do their thing and prevent mis-declaration of shipments," Templo said. Templo admitted that the issuance of the directive was in response to the criticism of Senators Juan Ponce Enrile and Francis Escudero that the bureau allows importers without tax identification numbers to bring in onions and other agriculture products in the country. "I issued the memo in reaction to the observations made by the senators," Templo said. The senators said the failure of the bureau to stop these illegal activities is taking its toll on the local agricultural production. The CIIS chief for Port of Manila (POM), Johnny Martinez, said the agency is now in full alert in the monitoring of all imported items that are coming at the said port. "We have strong intelligence, stringent inspection and swift apprehension operations to make sure that these goods will not be able to pass-through our gates without paying the proper duties and taxes," he said. - GMANews.TV