CUSTOMS EMPLOYEES’ STATEMENTS ON THE STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS OF PRESIDENT AQUINO

Foreword:   In defense of their own ranks, Customs employees have answered point by point the issues raised by the president during the SONA Read by a customs representative in a press conference held at the Port of Manila Social Hall, Port Area Manila by Vincent Villanueva, Assistant Chief Planning and Policy Research Division

We, the employees association would like to clarify point by point the statements made on the agency, its leadership and the rank and file.

"Para namang nakikipagtagisan sa kapalpakan itong Bureau of Customs. Imbes na maningil ng tamang buwis at pigilan ang kontrabando, parang walang pakundangan ang pagpapalusot nila ng kalakal, pati na ng ilegal na droga, armas, at iba pa sa ating teritoryo."

The Bureau of Customs has been the whipping boy of politicians in the past and in the present. Being at the forefront of trade and commerce in the economic gateway, it has always been at the headlines in all forms media. In a business culture where trade and politics are synonymous, it is being feasted upon by politicians who would want to have an edge in media mileage.

With them politicians citing everything that is attributed to corruption, smuggling, prohibited drug syndicates and illegal firearms, the men and women of the agency either would just keep its mouth shut and eyes wide open in bewilderment. Even if customs personnel have apprehended millions worth of these products of illicit trade and environmental crimes, nothing seems ENOUGH. Even if we’ve been able to slam the statistics of our accomplishments in the faces of these politicians, they will not be recognized as news worthy because for these people positive things are not controversial that would make them more controversially pogi in the eyes of the public.

Nonetheless, in spite and despite of these political rants and raves in the media, as a public servants we have no option but to perform our mandated functions in our daily working routine: apprehend illegalities, make a report, have those top management presidential appointees to pose in front of the camera with the objects of our accomplishments and apprehensions of: smuggled cars, rice, onions, garlic, illegal drugs, firearms and ammunitions, fake Viagra, counterfeit apparels… etc… NONETHELESS, THESE ARE not enough. Makapal pa rin ang mukha naming mga kawani ng aduana.

Even if we’ve been able to collect x billions for x number of decades to add up to what’s been collected by the BIR, we would still be whipped by politicians who have been eating up the money that we put in the treasury that forms part of their pork barrel.

"Tinataya nga po ng Department of Finance na mahigit 200 billion pesos ang kita na dumudulas lang at hindi napupunta sa kaban ng bayan."

Statistics with no basis have been slapped on our faces by those influential persons who are close to the speech writers of the president. Have they ever considered that the Bureau of Customs only collects revenues based on the rates of duties defined by the Tariff Commission…. where the rates have all been decreased by the Free Trade Agreements that the Department of Trade and Industry and the Department of Foreign Affairs has entered into? The 5,000 tariff articles’ rates ranging between twenty to thirty percent in 1990s have now been dropped to an average of ZERO to seven percent. Yet the targets defined by the Department of Finance have kept on increasing illogically and mathematically. Targets may never have been met but like BIR mentions (even if they’ve not met the target) collections are definitely higher than the previous year.

Fifty percent of the Customs Bonded Warehouse Operators have moved to Economic Zones at this point there are about 4,000 accredited economic zones where significant number of them are not even located near a sea port or an airport. All of them are engaged in importation. The volume of the importation in these economic zone are significantly rising every year as number of local companies have also applied to make their company PEZA registered ecozone. Big corporations are availing of the tax shelters of the economic zone schemes where the goods that are being imported are not within the jurisdiction of Customs. Have you ever wondered why pundits, politicians and other agency have kept on pointing their fingers at BOC stating we are losing 200 billion worth of revenues?

All these detractors need to do is to match Customs data with that of these economic zones. Bureau of Customs data is already computerized. It has been there since 1999 all that needs to be done is match this BOC data with PEZA data. Unfortunately, PEZA and other economic zone administration has none. It is not our function to monitor PEZA data because logically it is not our jurisdiction. The payments data for these collections go straight from the bank to the Department of Treasury. BOC has initiated this dramatic improvement and not any politician.

"Saan po kaya kumukuha ng kapal ng mukha ang mga kawani sa ahensyang ito? Kulang na lang ay sabihin nilang, "Wala akong pakialam kung mapunta sa masasamang loob ang armas; wala akong pakialam kung ilang buhay ang masira ng droga; wala akong pakialam kung habambuhay na matigang ang mga sakahan.”

We have 17,000 square kilometers of coastal areas. We have 120 internationally listed ports. Multiply these ports by 5 private wharfs and ports, our area of responsibility is around 600 entry points. The outports that should have been controlled solely by BOC are controlled by politicians who belong to oligarchs who can manipulate designations of port collectors. There will be no shipment of trade-in goods, illegal drugs and counterfeit products without the blessing of any of these oligarchs who manipulate not only the assignments of directors at the port but all the other government agencies as well.

We don’t have any ships nor boats to make our personnel mobile to really apprehend products of environmental crime and illicit goods. The ships that Immigration, Quarantine and Customs are in full control of are those that have docked in our major ports. The apprehensions of the crime products that have been ranted in the SONA seem to be incomprehensible for the reports of significant number of seizures stated in the media mentions otherwise.

“Ang mahalaga, yumaman ako; bahala ka sa buhay mo." Hindi maaaring ganito ang kalakaran sa pamahalaan. Kung hindi mo nagagawa ang iyong trabaho, hindi ka karapat-dapat na manatili sa pwesto."

The Customs and Tariff Modernization Act has been drafted in 2006 by the bureau personnel… not by any politician. It is the embodiment of what Customs personnel stood for. It has been lobbied several times only to be ignored by politicians who have vested interests making BOC a money milking agency. This should change or should have changed the course of how business needs to be done as far as importation procedures are concerned. No more harang, no more padrinos. This is injected with the standards set by the World Customs Organization that have been adopted the more developed countries.

The process improvements at the Bureau of Customs have been recognized by credible research bodies such as the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group. At the ease of doing business survey research, has ranked the Philippines 138th from among the 184 economies. The survey has ranked the Customs group 53… the highest among the ten other groups of agencies and private sectors (starting up a business, access to electricity, resolving insolvency, protecting investors etc…). The agency as stated in the WB study, has narrowed down the imports documentation to 7 in 2013 from 10 (AY-2010). Since the Philippine media is controversy driven institution, these things are better left unmentioned and unpublished. Some of them would even mention that the agency is corrupting them.

"Kung matino kang kawani ng BI, ng NIA, ng Customs, o ng kahit ano pang ahensya ng gobyerno, sana makiambag ka pa lalo. Hindi sapat na yumuko sa loob ng cubicle; bahagi ng trabaho mo ang pagpigil sa mali. Nasa tama kayo, kaya’t huwag po kayong magtago; padaliin ninyo ang pagnanais kong mahanap kayo; paaangatin ko kayo nang paaangatin upang ibandila ang inyong mabuting ehemplo, at mabago na ang maling kultura sa inyong mga ahensya."

We have our share of improvements. They are significant in a sense that the international community of investors consider them a factor in their decision to invest in the Philippines. Unfortunately, the bickerings of politicians with the aid of the controversy driven traditional media will always picture us as the sickest agency that this administration needs to deal with. Aren’t you even wondering why media practitioners would always banter bad words against the agency even if there are no controversial issues? Why would politicians in the provinces choose their port director and directors of other agencies as well?

We are a part of your team Mr. President along with your political appointees. We have done our share in making your appointees look good. Yet we the employees, the rank and file have been for the last few months have been the political punching bag by those who have misinformed you because of their greed.

As government officers, no matter what rank we have… we are co-owners of our agency and we are bound to protect the interest of the government and the principles of the men and women who have strived hard to do things right and make things right.