By Mortz C. Ortigoza
Some senators and the Samahan ng Industriya at Agrikultura (SINAG)
bewailed the procrastination of the officials of the Bureau of Customs to file the no - bail Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016 versus the smugglers whose
thousands of bags of rice were seized by the government.
“Ang smuggling tuloy pa rin ang pasok dapat malaman natin sa Port of
Cebu saka iyong sa Cagayan de Oro and Zamboanga kung nag file sila ng case kasi
kung hindi sila nag file ng case, iyong Zamboanga kasi ay malaki about 60,000
bags I think ni press con pa nila dapat ni file na,” declared by
Rosendo So, Chair of SINAG, during the February 27 hearing of the
Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food chaired by Senator Cynthia
Villar.
SUMMIT -
Samahan ng Industriya at Agrikultura (SINAG) Chairman Rosendo So (extreme left)
and Senators Cynthia Villar and Grace Poe lead the ribbon cutting for the
opening of the International Farmers Summit 2018 held recently at the SMX
Convention Center, Mall of Asia in Pasay City.
Chairman So said that until now P120 million bags of rice impounded in
January 7 this year in Zamboanga Sibugay have remained not inventoried.
“120
million (pesos) ito. Matagal na ito, 60,000 bags. Ngayon 40,000 bags nawala na
iyong 20,000 bags,” he deplored.
Senator Villar admonished Zamboanga BoC District Collector Jesus
Balmores when he said that the 60 bags of rice seized in the Philippine-registered
cargo ship M/V J-Phia was an estimate by the Philippines Coast Guard while the
Customs is presently conducting an investigation.
“Ini-imbertaryo
pa nila hanggang ngayon after two months. Siguro bago matapos ang imbentaryo
ninyo ubos na iyong bigas. Ano ba iyan?! Akala naman ninyo sa mga senators kaka
iñgot!” the lady senator hissed.
Senators Francis Pangilinan, Jayvee Ejercito, and Nancy Binay posed the
same questions why until now the BoC did not investigate and file the heavy
Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act against the violators.
When Balmores said that his office was still waiting for funds to start
the inventory, he was reproved again by Villar.
“Hindi pa
ninyo pa na inventory two months na, bumaba na sa 40 thousand bags bago ninyo
maimbenteryo baka below na sa ten million pesos iyan na hindi na iyan
large scale agricultural smuggling”.
The Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act penalizes with a life imprisonment
and a fine of twice the fair value of the smuggled agricultural product and the
aggregate amount of the taxes, duties and other charges avoided shall be
imposed the smuggling of rice with a minimum amount of ten million pesos
(P10,000,000.00) to the offender, as valued by BOC.
Villar did not want the illegal goods sell at an auction because the
smugglers themselves will win the bid.
“Hindi na
e auction kasi kung bibili sa auction iyon din iyong smuggler, ano ba iyan?
Halatang halata na iyan!”
Mr. So said the exact numbers of rice confiscated can be found out at
the ship’s draft.
“May record ang Customs niyan kung ilang metric tons”.
Binay suggested that those smuggled goods can be donated to the poor in
the war torn Marawi City and the Department of Social Welfare & Development
while Villar appealed to President Rodrigo Duterte to issue an executive order to
donate the rice to the National Food Authority.
Deputy Customs Commissioner Edward James Dy Buco said the Bureau of
Customs had seized 10 containers of the smuggled staple in Subic, 40,000 bags
in Zamboanga, and 32 containers of rice in Cebu.
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