Isidro Lapeña still enjoys Duterte trust – Palace

MANILA, Philippines — Former Customs chief Isidro Lapeña still enjoys President Duterte’s trust and confidence until he is found guilty of the charges against him, Malacañang said yesterday.

Lapeña, who was replaced as Customs chief as he was facing controversy over the entry of a multibillion-peso shabu shipment, is facing graft charges over 105 missing containers believed to have contained undervalued goods. 

The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) said Lapeña had violated the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act when he failed to stop the release of the undervalued items from the Asian Terminals Inc. (ATI). 

Lapeña previously filed smuggling cases against ATI and six other companies for supposedly releasing shipping containers without being examined. ATI said it could only process containers for release from the port after Customs issues a release instruction. 

Lapeña, who has been named Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) director-general, is also facing administrative complaints of gross neglect of duty and grave misconduct over the release of the P69.68-million shipment. 

Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo said the filing of cases against Lapeña proved that no one is exempt from the administration’s drive against corruption. 

“No one, friends or political foes alike, is spared in our fight against corruption. The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) has a mandate to fulfill and its action is proof that the President shall not shield those upon whom a shadow of doubt has been cast,” Panelo said in a statement. 

“Good governance is the hallmark of the Duterte administration. This latest development is a reaffirmation of the President’s commitment against all forms of corruption and illegality,” he added. 

But Panelo maintained Lapeña is presumed innocent until proven otherwise. 

“Nonetheless, we point out that TESDA director-general Lapeña has the constitutional right to be presumed innocent. Until and unless proven otherwise, he still enjoys the trust and confidence of the appointing authority who happens to be the President,” Panelo said. 

Duterte replaced Lapeña as customs chief as the bureau is drawing flak over the entry of about P11 billion worth of shabu in the country. Despite the controversy, Duterte believes Lapeña is an honest man and was only outplayed by a “corrupt system.” 

Last week, the President described the Bureau of Customs (BOC) as “anarchy” and admitted that corruption would persist in the agency regardless of who is heading it. 

The others

Lapeña, for his part, hit the NBI for failing to unmask those behind the smuggling of 105 container vans of ceramic tiles when they filed graft charges against him. 

Lapeña lamented the NBI should have instead identify the others behind the smuggling.

“It is unfortunate that the NBI concluded its investigations on the case of the 105 illegally released containers from the Port of Manila without getting any statements from me,” Lapeña said. 

“What is more unfortunate is that the NBI did not unmask the real people behind the illegal scheme,” he added. 

Lapeña stressed the unlawful release of the 105 container vans would not have been discovered were it not for his issuance of alert orders of the shipment involving 119 container vans.

“I know that this illegal scheme is possibly happening even long before I was placed in the Bureau of Customs. Under my watch, this modus was uncovered. It was under my watch that we discovered 105 containers illegally released from the terminal, through the use of fake documents,” Lapeña said. 

Lapeña also denied protecting the personalities behind the illegal release of the container vans.

He said he had ordered the filing of criminal cases against them.

“It is unclear to me why would NBI find negligence on my part when I was the one who alerted (them about) the containers. Based on existing procedures in the BOC, the release of containers from a certain port is the responsibility of the concerned officers of that port,” Lapeña said.

“I was hoping that their investigation would lead to finding out the truth and the people who connived to release the 105 containers from the terminal. I leave the development of this case to the DOJ (Department of Justice),” he said.

“I maintain that I did the right thing that was supposed to be done at that time.”

The DOJ is set to forward to the Office of the Ombudsman the graft charges filed by the NBI against Lapeña.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said that while the DOJ has concurrent jurisdiction to conduct preliminary investigation on graft cases, the ombudsman has exclusive jurisdiction on high-ranking officials.

“This rule on cases against officials with salary grade of at least 27 under the Memorandum of Agreement of DOJ and the ombudsman has not been amended, and therefore still in effect,” Guevarra said.

Sen. Richard Gordon said there are lessons that can be learned from the legal woes of Lapeña.

“He’s OK but things have been happening behind his back. It’s a jungle out there,” said Gordon, chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon committee, referring to the BOC.

For the past months, the committee has been investigating corruption at the BOC, including the smuggling of tons of shabu worth billions of pesos that found their way to the streets.

Gordon said new BOC chief Rey Leonardo Guerrero should make sure that his subordinates are not coopted by smugglers.

“From what I see (Lapeña) lacked follow-through on his orders,” he said.

Gordon, however, declined to comment on the case pushed by the NBI.

The committee is expected to conduct its final hearing on the smuggling of illegal drugs at the BOC next week.  – With Evelyn Macairan, Paolo Romero, Edu Punay