Solon seeks probe into failure of PDEA, BOC to detect illegal drugs in warehouse

In this file photo, ACT-CIS party-list Rep. Eric Yap holds deliberations on the Office of the President’s proposed budget for 2021. (Screenshot from a House of Representatives’ YouTube video).

MANILA, Philippines — ACT CIS Partylist Rep. Eric Yap is seeking an investigation on the alleged failure of the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) to detect the illegal drugs found in a warehouse in Malabon City back in 2019.

House Resolution No. 1330 directs the House Committee on Dangerous Drugs to conduct the probe in aid of legislation.

In May 2019, illegal drugs amounting to over P1.1 billion were found concealed in 114 bags and kept inside several aluminum pallets at the Goldwin Commercial Warehouse in Barangay Santolan in Malabon. The shipment was marked as tapioca.

“It has been more than a year since the drugs were found in a shipment that supposedly contained tapioca starch, but the people responsible for this neglect has not been held accountable,” Yap said in Filipino in a statement.

“What happened here was that the shipment arrived in January 2019. Because the import entry pass of the consignee had not been filed in Customs, this went to the government,” he added.

According to Yap,  government agencies received information that the shipment contained illegal drug substances, and yet the BOC and PDEA cleared the shipment.

“Because it was cleared, it was auctioned, and Goldwin Commercial won. Just a few days after it was delivered to Goldwin ng May 2019,  they reported to Customs that they had seen a white crystalline substance coming out of the aluminum pallet. When they examined it again, it was positive to be drugs,” Yap said.

“The problem here is that it was examined first before being auctioned, and then it was cleared. But when it was examined again, suddenly it was positive to be drugs?  Surely there’s neglect here,” the lawmaker added.

Yap questioned how the shipment was able to pass the BOC and why PDEA cleared the shipment despite containing illegal drug substances.

“What will become of us if the agencies we are relying on to give protection to Filipinos are the first ones who will deceive us? We will focus on this until we can hold someone responsible,” Yap said.

“We have filed House Resolution No. 1330 so that Congress itself will investigate this and get answers to our questions. It’s time to clean up the agencies that are nests of corruption and deception. Nobody will escape during our watch,” he added.

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