Special unit to go after corrupt Customs officials, employees

Customs Commissioner Isidro Lapeña

To curb the perennial problem of corruption in the Bureau of Customs (BOC), Customs Commissioner Isidro Lapeña has ordered the creation of a unit to investigate agency officials and employees engaged in wrongdoing.

In a memorandum issued on December 29, 2017, Lapeña ordered the creation of the Interim Internal Affairs and Integrity Unit (IIAIU), whose key mandate is to prevent BOC officials and employees from amassing ill-gotten wealth.

Corruption issue has been hounding the bureau for the longest time. “That is why we are now facing it head-on,” Lapeña said in a statement on Wednesday.

“It is incumbent upon public servants to promote high standard of public service, improve efficiency and institute professionalism in all our dealings,” he added.

The IIAIU, which is headed by the Commissioner, aims to crack down on Customs officials and employees engaged in corruption.

It investigates complaints against BOC personnel, receive and gather evidence in support of an open investigation, and conduct motu propio investigation on incidents where evidence in the prosecution of smuggling cases was compromised, tampered with, obliterated, or lost while in the custody of Customs employees.

It also conducts lifestyle checks on BOC employees and officials, and evaluate or recommend the filing of appropriate criminal cases against those who are found guilty of corruption.

The unit is composed of a lawyer, two special investigators, and three administrative staff.

Lapeña’s move came months after officials of the BOC were tagged in the smuggling of P6.4-billion illegal drugs from China.

Former Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon and several other Customs officials who were slapped with drug complaints in connection with the scandal were cleared by the Department of Justice of any involvement in the anomaly.  /cbb