INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines–Only 769 of the 4,757 applicants, or 16 percent, vying for more than 1,000 supervisory and other staff positions at the Bureau of Customs (BOC) passed the general aptitude tests conducted jointly by the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and the BOC on Aug. 31 and Sept. 28.
In an advisory, the Department of Finance (DOF)-attached agency disclosed over the weekend that 84 applicants for supervisory posts and 685 for nonsupervisory positions passed the exams.
“They will move on to the second phase of screening—another set of competency-based tests, including job-specific examinations and personal interviews,” the BOC said.
Physical tests will also be conducted on those applying for positions in the intelligence and enforcement groups.
The bureau said it would keep the public posted on the next round of job screenings.
Job applicants from Metro Manila and other parts of Luzon took the exams in several test centers in Quezon City, while their counterparts in the Visayas and Mindanao took the tests in Cebu City and Davao City, respectively.
Based on merit, fitness
Customs Commissioner John Phillip Sevilla has assured the public that the new BOC employees will be hired not on the basis of endorsements but on their merits and assessment for being physically fit for the job.
“We also won’t tolerate nepotism, which can be a cause of corruption. That is why we will not entertain applicants who have relatives in the bureau up to the fourth degree of consanguinity,” he said.
The former DOF undersecretary expressed confidence the BOC’s partnership with the CSC “will further bolster the bureau’s selection and hiring process.”
“This is a landmark partnership that will further elevate our hiring process. With the BOC-CSC partnership, we are positive that we will be able to put into fruition processes that will ensure that all future customs employees are competent, professional and ethical public servants,” he said.
In a statement, Sevilla earlier said the hiring of new employees to fill the vacancies in the bureau would enable it to provide “a faster and better standard of service to importers, exporters and the public dealing with the bureau.”
“On the average, we are handling more than 3,000 import entries and over 6,000 individual importation items every day,” he said.
“Around 4,000 containers arrive in the country each day that we need to inspect. In order to facilitate these transactions, we need additional manpower,” he said.
However, he said there were only 3,000 employees in the bureau to do the job.
“The lack of manpower is further aggravated by natural attrition due to retirement and resignation, as well as dropping from the rolls and dismissal from the service,” he said.