Customs brokers commend outgoing district collector

CEBU, Philippines - The Chamber of Customs Brokers Inc.-Cebu Chapter commended outgoing Customs Cebu district collector Ronnie Silvestre as some quarters strongly criticized the current move of Customs Commissioner Rozzano Rufino Biazon in transferring Silvestre despite meeting the multi-billion target collection last year.

In Board Resolution No. 002-2013, CCBI-Cebu Chapter commended Silvestre “for having shown admirable qualities of innovation, creativity, resilience and leadership during his term as district collector”.

CCBI is a professional organization of customs brokers accredited by BOC to assist the transacting public and protect the interest of the government.

The CCBI said that Silvestre followed the vision of BOC to enhance revenue collections and curb, if not eradicate, smuggling.

Silvestre was instrumental behind BOC’s meeting the P8.677 billion target for 2012 and P13 million surplus collections.

He, however, is slated to be transferred to a smaller port at Clark International Airport.

A turnover ceremony will be held tomorrow, February 6, 2012 at Malacañang sa Sugbo wherein BOC’s 111th founding anniversary will also be celebrated. More than 400 guests are expected to attend this nationwide event.

To recall, BOC Commissioner Biazon reassigned 16 BOC officials, including Silvestre, to the different ports of the country effective January 10, 2013.

In a text message to The Freeman, Biazon said that the reassignment of these 16 officials is done because he wanted to have a new configuration of his team in 2013 in order to improve their performance in 2012.

The commissioner added that he will be evaluating them every three months and if the configuration does not produce good results, he is prepared to reconfigure them again.

Under Customs Personnel Order no. B-14-2013, Silvestre will be transferred to Clark International Airport in Pampanga as officer-in-charge while collector Edward dela Cuesta, who is the district collector of CIA will be the officer-in-charge of Silvestre’s vacated post.

Silvestre became the district collector of Cebu way back in December of 2009.

In 2012, BOC-Cebu under the leadership of Silvestre was able to meet the P8.677 billion target collection and a surplus of P13 million.

The CCBI stated that Silvestre paved the way for the construction of Plaza Aduana, a building that houses the planned one-stop-shop processing of import and export operations in the form of public-private partnership where the government did not spend a single cent.

They added that they have a good line of communication with Silvestre because of a consultative mechanism dubbed as “Kapihan sa Aduana” where customs brokers, importers, exporters, shipping lines, forwarders, arrastre operators, export zone locators and other stakeholders met at least once a month to discuss the pressing problems concerning customs matters as well as to solicit the involvement of all stake holders in coming up with solutions.

On the other hand, the Norkis Group, which was among the top 20 taxpayers at BOC thanked Silvestre for the distinguished examples he had consistently displayed not only in the administration of the Port of Cebu, but also in the equal and fair treatment he had given to Cebu importers, including them.

“We commend and appreciate your three years in the Port of Cebu, and we wish you Godspeed in your next challenge. You will be leaving with our highest respects of all Cebu. We will all miss you,” read the letter of Norkis Group Chairman Dr. Norberto B. Quisumbing Jr.

The copies of the letter were furnished to Customs Commissioner Biazon and Cebu Sixth District Representative Luis Gabriel “Luigi” Quisumbing.

When asked for comments about his transfer, Silvestre said in jest, “I love you, Cebu!”. (FREEMAN)