Php 14 Million worth of illegally imported onions were seized recently by Bureau of Customs (BOC) Intelligence Group (IG) operatives under Deputy Commissioner Danilo Lim when alert Manila International Container Port-Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (MICP-CIIS) officials led by Bienvenido Rubio discovered the misdeclaration in the onion shipment fromChina.
In today’s (October 8, 2012) presentation to the media of the seized onions, Customs Commissioner Ruffy Biazon said, the six (6) forty-footer container vans of illegally imported onions which were consigned to RSG Marketing and Adier Enterprise Trading arrived at the Manila International Container Port (MICP) on July 26, 2012 and August 2, 2012 respectively. Five (5) of the six (6) forty footer container vans were consigned to RSG Marketing while one (1) was consigned to Adier Enterprise Trading.
“To circumvent the existing ban on the importation of onions, RSG marketing declared its onion shipment in their entry as fresh pears while Adier Enterprise Trading declared its shipment as household decors,” Biazon said.
“We will never allow the interest of our local onion raisers to be compromised by smugglers. This is the essence of the ban on onion importations. Â With proper coordination with the Department of Agriculture (DA), the BOC will never allow illegally imported onions to get through our gates,” the Commissioner added.
For his part, Lim said the consignees of the six container vans of illegally imported onions violated Section 101, in relation to Sections 2503 and 2530 of the Tariffs and Customs Code of the Philippines (TCCP) when they misdeclared their onion shipment.
“Upon receipt of our MICP operative’s report and upon confirmation of the misdeclaration, I immediately issued the corresponding Warrant of Seizure and Detention (WSD) to facilitate the immediate seizure of said shipment,” Lim said, adding that, “Had these container vans of illegal onion shipment been released and had it reached the local market, thousands of our local onion raisers could be spending a bleak Christmas.”
The onset of the Yuletide season is usually the time of the year when the bulk of food and agricultural products importations peak. But this is also usually the time when attempts to illegally sneak such products into the country happen the most.
“In compliance with the Commissioner’s order for the BOC Intelligence Group (IG) to be upbeat with the onset of the holidays, I have already instructed all IG operatives to double their monitoring efforts of cargo movements at all ports,” Lim further stressed.
