Corruption is a cancer: a cancer that eats away at a citizen’s faith in democracy, diminishes the instinct for innovation and creativity; already-tight national budgets, crowding out important national investments. It wastes the talent of entire generations. It scares away investments and jobs.
— Former United States president Joseph Robinette Biden
It appear it would be better if the police are the ones to pursue a crackdown on the sale of fake and smuggled cigarettes since the Bureau of Customs have failed in putting an end to it due to the involvement of some of its officials and employees to the illegal tobacco trade.
I remember when I was young, I heard about how contraband like smuggled cigarettes and liquor from Malaysia and Indonesia were brought to shore at secluded points of Cavite’s shoreline and noone bothered to put a stop to it.
In fact, shameful as it may seem, my father then had a had to the smuggling as he often rode shotgun to the truck used for delivering the contraband so it would not be detained and confiscate enroute to the pier where Customs agents awaited.
This is why it is no longer an issue or a bit of news that some people in the BoC are involved in smuggling.
And this gives way to additional information that we receive. The truth is that we were even given documents that proves this is nothing new when it concerns the Bureau as it only strengthens the view that the BoC is one the most corrupt-or the most corrupt-among all of the government’s different agencies.
The additional info is about one of the two Customs employees who were charged by the Metro Manila Highway Patrol Group over the sale of smuggled cigarettes from a warehouse in Santa Maria, Bulacan which they raided last month.
Based on a Customs Personnel Order (CPO), the agency assigned Alexander ‘Alex’ Arroyo Jr. at the Customs house in the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) in Pasay City.
In truth, we doubt this very much as the BoC office at the NAIA has enough messengers so why the need to send Arroyo there when his job description designates him as an administrative aide 2 or simply put a messenger!
And our airport insider even told us about Alex: “Hindi pa nakapag-take oath of office iyang si Alex (dahil) kaka-submit pa lang ng requirements noong Agosto 10.”
Also stated in the CPO: “Relative thereto, all the documentary requirements related to the attestation of appointment by the Civil Service Commission, as in the Checklist of Requirements to be sent by the Human Resources Division via electronic mail, must be compiled not later than 10 August 2026.”
But let us go back to the resulting clash between the BoC and HPG, which has threatened to expose the wrongdoings and the continuance of rampant smuggling in the country.
In the investigative report submitted to Customs commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno, it was said that special agent Lucky Joy Solmayor was the only one who possessed a valid mission order (MO) in the operation conducted on the Bulacan warehouse and this us the very reason why the Customs Police-Enforcement Security Service is questioning Arroyo’s presence during the raid.
It may be recalled that the HPG raided the warehouse in Santa Maria, Bulacan on August 19—more than a week after Arroyo submitted the requirements needed for him to get the post in the BoC-NAIA.
It appears Arroyo traveled many kilometers away to be there in Bulacan!
Be that as it may, may we ask what has Commissioner done about this?
One observer remarked in the vernacular: “Mukha na naman kasing nalusutan siya ng kanyang sariling tauhan gaya nitong 15 mga trailer truck na may kargang smuggled na sigarilyo na naharang ng Central Luzon Police sa magkahiwalay ng operasyon sa Bataan at Pampanga noong gabi ng Lunes, Setyembre 7.”
Estimates said that contraband is worth one billion pesos and was transported from the seaport in Mariveles, Bataan.
FOR your comments or suggestions, complaints or requests, just send a message through my email at cipcab2006@yahoo.com or text me at cellphone numbers 09171656792 or 09171592256 during office hours from Monday to Friday. Thank you and mabuhay!
