Subic Bay Freeport – Bureau of Customs (BOC) Port of Subic District Collector Noel C. Estanislao, Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel and Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman Engr. Eduardo Jose Aliño led the inspection of suspected smuggled agricultural products here at the New Container Terminal, Subic Bay Freeport on Tuesday.
This is response to a directive by DA Secretary Laurel to suspend the release of 59 containers suspected of agricultural smuggling. The BOC Port of Subic reported that
after a thorough review and reconciliation of documents, only 52 x 40 containers were found, consigned to 5 different trading firms. The initial number of 59 containers was due to overlapping Alert Order references and clerical errors in the Bill of Lading.
Additionally, the BOC- Port of Subic disclosed that 7 of the containers were subjected to 100 percent examination and were cleared for release after no discrepancies or violations were found, prior to the receipt of the respective alert orders from the DA.
14 containers were also subjected to 100 percent examination and were cleared for release after no discrepancies or violations were again found.
Meanwhile, 31 containers are currently under customs custody after failed examinations primarily due to the absence of its consignee or DA-IE representatives at the designated cold storage warehouses. 10 of these 31 containers were viewed today as part of joint inspection process.
According to the Secretary, the 10 containers opened today which contained 5 containers of mackerel and the ones with unions and carrots with an estimated value of around 100 million pesos originated from china.
“Last night we had a meeting with the new BOC Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno and PNP Chief General Nicholas Torre, and representatives from the CIDG along with Secretary Año of NSA, because this is a national security matter. We are all really dedicated to address this problem because of our President’s order to really go after the companies that have already been caught. Hopefully by the end of the year we will see many of them in handcuffs,” Laurel said.
An additional 3 containers consigned to Queenstar Industry and Consumer Trading were subjected to separate Alert Orders and examined. The Port has issued Warrants of Seizure and Detention (WSD) for the 3 containers after they were found to contain agricultural products such as carrots and frozen mackerel, which were found to be in violation of applicable importation and agricultural-related regulations.
The BOC – Port of Subic remains in close coordination with the Department of Agriculture to ensure the comprehensive inspections and stringent enforcement against agricultural smuggling, while adhering to proper legal protocols.
“This ongoing joint initiative reflects the government’s firm commitment to protecting the country’s agricultural sector,” District Collector Estanislao said.