Palace orders customs team suspended

3:58 am | Monday, October 3rd, 2011

Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Malacañang has ordered the 90-day suspension of an elite Bureau of Customs team of antismuggling operatives for alleged abuse of authority and extortion activities.

Suspended were Customs Deputy Commissioner Gregorio Chavez and seven of his men in the Run After The Smugglers (RATS) group following a complaint by Sanyo Seiki Stainless Steel Corp.

The suspension was imposed “considering the seriousness of the charges, the existence of prima facie case against the respondents that they are probably guilty thereof, which warrants their removal from the service,” according to the formal charge signed by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa on September 29.

The RATS team members suspended were lawyer Christopher Dy Buco and operatives Edgar Quinones, Francisco Fernandez Jr., Alfredo Adao, Jose Elmer Velarde, Thomas Patric Relucio and Jim Erick Acosta.

Chavez and the RATS members were given 10 days to answer the allegations raised by Sanyo Seiki of “grave misconduct, grave abuse of authority, oppression and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service.”

The charges against Chavez and his men stemmed from RATS’ raids on the rented warehouses of Sanyo Seiki in Caloocan City on July 1, and Meycauayan City, Bulacan, on July 4; and the impounding of trucks and goods owned by Sanyo Seiki on July 9.

The raids were allegedly conducted with defective mission orders while the impounding was done without the required warrant of seizure and detention.

Sanyo Seiki counsel Frank Chavez welcomed the Palace decision.

“We laud this swift justice given by the Aquino administration to businesses, particularly Sanyo Seiki Stainless Steel Corp., which are usually victimized by some crooked and corrupt men in government,” Chavez said in a statement.

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Tags: abuse of power , BOC , Bureau of Customs , Government , Rats , Run After The Smugglers , Smuggling

Anonymous

Give the RATS the Rodenticide dose…..
Tony B

Tell me again why it’s so difficult to attract foreign investment into The Philippines.
Anonymous

Looked like the RATS lived up to its name.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_5STEU22AD7YRHQSB6RE56ZDSYA J

Where there is smoke there is fire.
By mere accusations on any customs guys should resign.
For the guilty:
REMOVAL is not ENOUGH.
JAIL is not ENOUGH.
RECOVER the money and feed these RATS to Lolong (kung kaya sikmurain sila).

Anonymous

I agreed with you 100%, removal is not enough and jailing is not enough. So, the 3-in-1 treatment is remove them from office, file criminal case and jail them without plea bargain and recover the loot. Then finally feed them to Lolong.

http://twitter.com/LokalBrownies vin reyes

sana imbestigahan ng senado ginawang suspension ni executive secretary paquito ochoa sa grupo ni deputy commissioner gregorio chavez ng BOC…para patas imbestigahan pareho..bakit kailangan pang malakanyang ang mag order ng suspension ano ba ginagawa ng mga bagong appointed na sina raffy biazon at danny lim….dapat sa kanila mangaling yung order at hindi sa isang executive secretary..ano silbi ng bagong appointed dyan sa BOC…wala namang problema na labanan ang “corruption” sa bureaucracy, bayaan nyong “diskartehan” nila biazon at lim problema sa BOC huwag ka ng “sumawsaw’ sec. ochoa baka sumabit ka pa..walastik talaga namumuro ka na sa totoo lang pasaway ka rin eh..ingat lang baka mamaya magising ka na lang “iba” na naman sitwasyon natin ewan ko lang kung saan na naman kayo pupulutin.

Anonymous

Vin Reyes, Sec. Ochoa is the executive secretary, I hope you understand his function and responsibilities..He is the mouth piece of Pnoy as well as the executor of Pnoy’s decision to get rid of people in the government who are not delivering well and with questionable integrity….:-)

Anonymous

We’re jumping the gun again… If they’re guilty, then they’re guilty. But that remains to be proven – in court and not in the press.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_46A22HWZC6HS2TSWMSMLQYNNVE ChameleonO

It’s Frank Chavez so Malacanang moved swiftly. But nevertheless, Customs men abuse all the time they process importers and exporters. I remember a cousin of mine paying threefolds that what appeared on the receipt so he could get discount on the original customs charge for importing a technological machine from the US. The original charge was nine times the amount reflected on the receipt.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_RQPBKLCOXZ2JTBNIE3SGLONJEY Shopaholik!

Mga daga ang mga ito ni Angelito Alvarez. Yun bang mama na mandarya sa golf
http://twitter.com/tbelzunce Antonio Belzunce

90-day suspension of an elite Bureau of Customs team of antismuggling operatives for alleged abuse of authority and extortion activities is not substantial justice or approach to justice. It should be known that if a crime is committed and proven, then the suspension is automatically action as an expulsion. This to me is proper justice and the suspension is based on the duration until proven guilty or not guilty.This is a sample of justice infrastructure deficiency that just toys with the perceived justice system. If you want or commit to practice justice, then do it properly and move away from this indecisive actions leading to no where or subject to possible deception of justice.
Anonymous

“The suspension was imposed “considering the seriousness of the charges,
the existence of prima facie case against the respondents that they are
probably guilty thereof, which warrants their removal from the service,”
according to the formal charge signed by Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa on September 29.” The next step is to investigate why it happened and formally charge all personnel responsible for the illegal raid and confiscation.
“The raids were allegedly conducted with defective mission orders while
the impounding was done without the required warrant of seizure and
detention.” If this is true, there is a breakdown in the chain of command. Who is responsible for the action of this group? Who does Customs Deputy Commissioner Gregorio Chavez reports to? And where does he get his mission order and required warrant of seizure and detention? Is there no oversight or a person or office that checks if the group has all the necessary legal papers to do their job or launch a raid or operation? It seems to me that it is due to lack of or break down in existing procedure or maybe both. But it’s only my opinion and I’ve been wrong before. :)

Palace orders customs team suspended

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