Bureau of Customs (BOC) | FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — A total of P24.28 billion worth of smuggled goods were seized in the country last year, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) said Wednesday.
The BOC, in a statement, said it had conducted 709 seizures throughout 2022, which yielded P11.95 billion in illicit drugs, P7.69 billion worth of counterfeit items and P1.87 billion worth of agricultural goods.
However, the remaining P2.77 billion in its estimated value of seized smuggled goods was not disclosed.
According to the BOC, the importation of agricultural products was tagged as high-risk commodities except for those under the Super Green Lane facility–which allows the advance processing and clearance of the shipments of qualified firms sans prior physical examination and documentary check while still complying with the law.
The BOC also said that of the 193 alert orders it had issued last year, 120 were found in violation of customs laws, rules and regulations.
The BOC implemented some 200 letters of authority, with 109 that “yielded positive results,” it added.
“On other high-risk shipments that resulted in the issuance of Warrant and Seizure and Detention, 88.8 percent are targeted shipments of the Risk Management Office for non-intrusive and physical inspection,” the BOC further said, touting its “improved risk management system.”
Rampant smuggling in the country has been a bane to many sectors, especially farmers and fisherfolk.
In Republic Act No. 10845, large-scale smuggling of agricultural products such as fruits and vegetables, which it refers to as “economic sabotage,” is a serious crime.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., who concurrently heads the Department of Agriculture, said he had “some very good ideas” to curb widespread smuggling in the country.
This, he noted, includes digitalizing the BOC and boosting local production of goods in the Philippines.