Gifts

How do you solve a problem like the Bureau of Customs?

This was a common question after the revelations (or mudslinging, depending on where you stand) of the past days on the extent of corruption in the BOC.

After being accused of receiving a welcome gift or “pasalubong” of P100 million upon assuming the post of BOC commissioner, Nicanor Faeldon struck back yesterday at his accuser, Sen. Panfilo Lacson, saying the son and namesake of the former police chief was himself the biggest smuggler of cement in the country.

Lacson’s intriguing response was not to clear his son outright, but to distance himself from Panfilo “Pampi” Jr.’s business enterprise. The senator vowed to be the first to file a criminal case against his son if the smuggling accusations against Pampi were verified.

Faeldon, during his press conference yesterday morning, seemed genuinely outraged by the corruption allegations hurled against him and the five other individuals he brought with him to the graft-ridden bureau.

Pampi Lacson and his Bonjourno Trading, with only P20,000 in capitalization, managed to import 67 shiploads of cement valued at P4.6 billion since last year alone, and even wanted the freight cost cut by 50 percent, Faeldon claimed.

Senator Lacson fired back that cement is not subject to tariff, only value-added tax, so there was no smuggling. (BOC officials clarified yesterday that this was true only if the cement came from a country with which the Philippines has a free trade agreement.)

Like President Duterte, whose anti-corruption campaign is hounded by insinuations of wrongdoing by eldest son Paolo, the accusations against Pampi Lacson are damaging to the father’s credibility. People are not prepared to ignore the charges hurled in public against the senator’s son.

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True or not, the alleged activities of Pampi in the bureau whose corruption Ping Lacson had exposed indicate the extent of the stink in the BOC.

In fact Lacson’s speech, protected by parliamentary privilege, merely provided details and reinforced what everyone has always suspected, and what previous BOC chiefs had hinted at, about the extent of corruption in the bureau. People are willing to believe stories about BOC clerks and janitors driving luxury SUVs and Lamborghinis.

Faeldon, incidentally, should go one step further and file appropriate charges, if warranted, against Pampi Lacson as well as that businessman who allegedly offered to give the BOC chief a “gift” of P300,000 a week when he assumed the commissioner’s post.

Even if only a gift, that was a case of attempted bribery under Article 212 of the Revised Penal Code. A public officer who does nothing about a bribery attempt can be held liable for an act of omission. The code of conduct and ethical standards for public officials and employees prohibits the acceptance of gifts worth even a fraction of P300,000.

Failure to go after those who offer bribes surely contributes to the culture of corruption in the BOC. If businessmen fear that they could face a criminal indictment for merely suggesting a “gift” to a Customs official, corruption could be cut substantially in the bureau.

But we all know that corruption works both ways. Ping Lacson’s exposé validated long-held suspicions that “gifts” are imposed at almost every step in the processing of shipments.

Apart from the “tara” for BOC personnel, every administration, bar none, has had well-connected individuals believed to be calling the shots at Customs. The involvement of presidential relatives, political allies and cronies in BOC shipment “facilitation” makes Customs personnel sneer at every public declaration of war on corruption in the bureau.

How many former Customs commissioners have openly sighed that they got “requests” from influential politicians and groups for preferential treatment of shipments? One commissioner resigned before he could even warm his seat, horrified after he found himself facing several notorious smugglers in a meeting arranged by the president’s son.

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For what seems to be forever, the rot in the BOC has been one of the top complaints of local and foreign investors alike. It’s a major drag in ease of doing business. It’s one of the biggest hindrances to entrepreneurship and the growth of small-scale businesses.

Even with the creation of the ASEAN Economic Community and the global trend of eliminating tariff barriers, the BOC – together with whoever is currently in a position to benefit from the rotten system – always managed to avoid any attempt to simplify procedures and cut personal discretion in the processing of shipments.

As in many other aspects of life in this country, reform is impossible because the handful of people who benefit from the rotten BOC system include those who are currently in power.

Customs personnel are seen to be simply among the most brazen in collecting grease money. Such systems also prevail in other agencies, including local government units. At every step of the way – usually with a document required for submission at each step that is then tossed to a useless archive – someone has his palm out, waiting for a “gift.” Everyone down the line must have a share so a layer of red tape must be designed into the process to make this possible. Contractors have horror stories about this nightmare.

There were high expectations that Noynoy Aquino, who rose to power on a platform of good governance, might be able to make a dent against corruption particularly in the BOC. It didn’t happen.

These days I’ve heard people expressing hope that President Duterte, who rose to power on a platform of killing criminals, might take his promise to the BOC. No kidding. Especially with the latest revelations about the stink in the bureau.

Farfetched, extreme? We also thought Duterte was just spewing hyperbole when he vowed to kill drug suspects.

Before macabre things start happening, perhaps the BOC can start cleansing itself.