Zamboanga City mayor urges NFA, BOC for
strict implementation of laws vs smuggling

Commenting on smuggling issue Monday, Zamboanga City Mayor Maria Isabelle Climaco-Salazar has called on the National Food Authority (NFA), Bureau of Customs (BOC) and other concerned government agencies to strictly implement the laws and regulations.

"We call on the NFA,Customs and the other agencies concerned to strictly implement all the laws and regulations so that in the end it will be the people who'll gain by the taxes paid," the mayor said told reporters in a press briefing at city hall.

"And once we have this, children will have school, chairs and people will have better health services and social services," she added.

Climaco's call developed amid statements of incoming Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol, tagging the NFA as one of the most corrupt agencies under the Department of Agriculture.

Last week, Piñol revealed that some of NFA officials have long been in cahoots with unscrupulous BOC officials in the smuggling of rice in the country and that billions of pesos were lost due to rice smuggling.

He also claimed that the NFA sell import permits and adopts a modus operandi by using the import permits again and again at least three times in cahoots with the BOC

The incoming DA secretary also disclosed that the big ships come in with smuggled goods, docking maybe in Jolo or Tawi-Tawi before smaller boats ferry smuggled items into the city unnoticed.

He charged that the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) assigned in Zamboanga City has been too lenient in enforcing the law.

The worse is that the BOC does not have warehouses to keep confiscated items and that allegedly a common payoff to the BOC was P14,000 for every smuggled shipment.

Monday's press conference at city hall, Climaco and Atty. Jesus Carbon briefed local reporters about the status of the city's fact-finding investigation on the missing hundreds sacks of sugar confiscated by authorities last year.

Carbon said that the BoC conducted its own probe, which pointed to the responsibility of officer-in-charge, and found an employee of the bureau as behind the missing seized sugars.

"Our investigation was merely a fact-finding investigation. We forwarded our investigation to them they did not follow it as they have their own investigation they came here and they foud the lady officer as (the one) responsible," Carbo said.

Carbon declined to mention the name of the suspect (BoC officer) to protect her even as they found the evidence very strong.

It maybe recalled that last year a report submitted by the Philippine Coast Guard to the office of Climaco, at least 1,170 sacks of sugar, each containing 50 kilograms, were seized from the vessel ML Ylaiza Mae.

The sacks of sugar were believed to have come from Malaysia. Upon inspection, however, Climaco found that only 326 sacks remained in the warehouse of the Bureau of Customs (BOC).

But the district collector claimed only 326 sacks were actually listed in their inventory. The district collector said they would stand by their figure, adding they religiously did their inventory.

Climaco, meantime, reiterated her administration stand that "we are strongly against smuggling and I will not be afraid to file a case if necessary with the help of Attorney Carbon."

When asked whether if she will recommend a revamp in the mentioned above government agencies, Climaco replied: "Yes but... well... it is the presidential prerogative but if they are not doing properly I think a revamp is necessary."

Climaco made clear that it should not be an order from her because it is not her jurisdiction. "Based on my observation, as a local chief executive, if they are not performing their functions well then they must be replaced." MGP News