BoC now watching smuggled cigarets, liquor via ‘backdoor’

With the “sin tax” law now in effect, the Bureau of Customs (BoC) and maritime law enforcement agencies here have tightened their monitoring on the entry of smuggled cigarettes, liquor and other related products via the “backdoor” or the coasts of General Santos City and the neighboring areas.
Customs Commissioner Rufino Biazon said the agency has strengthened its coordination with maritime law enforcement units as well as other concerned sectors to avert the entry of illegal shipments of imported cigarettes, liquor and other consumer goods from nearby Indonesia and other countries.
He noted that illegal traders have been taking advantage of the area’s long open shorelines and its proximity to Indonesian islands to smuggle their products.
“GenSan is so close to Indonesia and traders easily move the illegal shipments into these areas using bancas that don’t utilize our ports,” said Biazon, who led the inauguration of the new BoC offices at the Makar port here on Thursday.
To curb the problem, the official said they have enhanced their anti-smuggling campaign in the area through interagency cooperation.
The BoC has forged agreements with maritime law enforcement agencies, specifically the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), Philippine Navy and Maritime police, for the conduct of joint and coordinated operations against smuggling.
Navy and PCG vessels stationed in this city and the coastal town of Glan in Sarangani have been conducting regular patrols along the Sarangani Bay against illegal shipments and other related activities.
A number of major illegal shipments had been intercepted these past years by the interagency patrols but many shipments also managed to slip past them.
The smuggled products that usually proliferate in the local markets comprise cigarettes, liquor, soap, beauty care products and even pirated DVDs and CDs.
Most of these products were usually sold by peddlers, some stalls in local public markets and private business establishments.
Biazon said the most effective way to counter the entry of smuggled products in by regularly monitoring their entry and movements into the area.
“We’re putting pressure on our people not to allow these (illegal activities) to happen,” he said.
City Mayor Darlene Antonino-Custodio said they have been assisting the campaign against smuggling by making sure that these products don’t end up in local public markets and other business establishments. [PNA]