‘BOC chief not yet off the hook’

MANILA, Philippines -  Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon is not yet off the hook on the P6.4-billion shabu smuggling in the Port of Manila.

This was made clear yesterday by President Duterte and Faeldon’s direct superior,  Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, as well as some senators.

While stressing that he believed in Faeldon’s integrity, Duterte said last night that if Congress, observing due process, comes up with strong evidence linking the embattled Customs chief to corruption, he would be left with no choice but to let go of Faeldon.

“If there is corruption, wala na tayong magagawa (we can no longer do anything),” the President said at the 113th anniversary rites of the Bureau of Internal Revenue in Quezon City.

He said he would wait for Congress to finish its probe into the shabu smuggling case. When the final report comes out, he said, “I will review it and I will be fair.”

Dominguez said the Department of Finance would conduct its own probe into the case. “Nobody is safe, even me,” Dominguez said yesterday.

Duterte had summoned Faeldon from a House hearing to Malacañang and told the latter to stay on.

Yesterday, Duterte said Faeldon was one of several military officers who went to Davao about four years ago to urge him to seek the presidency.

Duterte also expressed support for BIR Commissioner Wilfredo Dular, who is involved in a fight with Deputy Commissioner Clint Aranas over the computation of the tax liabilities of large taxpayers such as Del Monte Philippines. But Duterte said he would leave the issue for Dominguez to resolve.

The Senate and the House of Representatives are investigating the shabu smuggling at Customs separately.

“We will wait for the results of the investigation of the legislature. We must respect that,” Dominguez said.

He noted that it is within the power and right of Congress to conduct investigation on pressing issues.

The finance chief was mum on the move of Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea to conduct another probe on the issue at the Palace level. “You should ask him,” Dominguez added.

At the Senate, Majority Leader Vicente Sotto III said the drug controversy involving Faeldon was discussed during the meeting of congressional leaders with Duterte at Malacañang on Tuesday night.

“So he (Duterte) was being apprised of the situation, and he said he will decide on what to do after the inquiry or after the congressional investigation. So nothing concrete at this time,” Sotto said.

Also present during the meeting were Senate President Aquilino Pimentel III, Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon, House Majority Leader Rodolfo Fariñas and Senators Sonny Angara, Richard Gordon and Panfilo Lacson.

He said the President told them Faeldon gave his side on the smuggling issue. Drilon said Duterte was “eagerly” awaiting the results of the two inquiries.

“Our agreement in the Senate is we will try to finish as soon as possible and we will submit our recommendation to the President,” Drilon told reporters. 

Meanwhile, presidential spokesman Ernesto Abella clarified Dominguez was not the one who issued the statement on the President’s expressing his “full trust and confidence” in Faeldon. Dominguez himself denied having made the statement released by the Presidential Communications Operations Office.

“May we clarify that he made no such announcement. He merely confirmed that a meeting with various officials transpired, when asked by our staff,” Abella said.

“As we have learned, various officials also attended the meeting wherein the President expressed confidence in Commissioner Faeldon and told him to serve the country. That means stopping the flow of drugs, which now are mostly from abroad,” Abella said.

“We enjoin the BOC to give this order full attention and compliance,” he said.

Abella was said to be in the United States when his subordinates issued the press statements on the result of Duterte’s meeting with Faeldon.

In another statement, the Palace confirmed the meeting between the President, Faeldon and Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Commissioner Cesar Dulay.

“The BIR and the BOC are agencies under the Department of Finance. In their meeting with the President, the Chief Executive reiterated his trust and confidence in Customs Commissioner Faeldon and asked him to focus on his job of serving the nation in his capacity as head of Customs,” Abella said.

President Duterte, on the same occasion, directed Dulay to work double time to speed up tax collections to cover the unexpected rise in expenditures as a result of natural disasters and the Marawi hostilities.  – Paolo Romero