Attempted smuggling of contraband valued at P140 million was foiled on Wednesday at this premier Freeport.
According to Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Chairman and Administrator Eduardo Jose L. Aliño, the items were seized thru the vigilance of the agency, Bureau of Customs (BOC) Port of Subic, and the Department of Agriculture (DA).
During the presentation to the media on Wednesday at the New Container Terminal (NCT), Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel and BOC Port of Subic District Collector Atty. Ricardo Uy Morales II opened a total of seven 40-footer container vans.
The two officials presented the first five container vans containing fresh carrots and fresh yellow onions from China. According to Laurel, the shipment was declared to contain a total of 13,250 cartons of frozen fresh fish egg balls.
The shipment was consigned to the Betron Consumer Goods Trading and arrived here on August 15, 2024 from China.
He added that the five container vans were found to contain 5,784 cartons of fresh carrots, 9,742 sacks of fresh yellow onions, and 320 cartons of frozen fresh egg balls. He also cited that the smuggled vegetables have a total fair market value of P21,082,752.
According to the BOC, the possible violations of the consignee are having no certificate of product registration issued by the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) for the frozen fresh egg balls; no Sanitary and Phytosanitary Import Clearance for the fresh carrots; and the undeclared shipment of fresh carrots and yellow onions.
The two other 40-footer container vans, consigned to the Subic All N1 Corp., were declared to contain 2,153 packages of tissues. The container vans arrived in Subic Freeport on August 13, 2024, with Taiwan as the country of origin.
Collector Morales said that the two container vans actually contained 167 packages of tissues, 993 master cases of Bros Premium Class A cigarettes, and 993 master cases of Commando Filter, Kings Finest, and Virginia Blend cigarettes.
Morales shared that the total fair market value for the smuggled items were priced at P115,509,839.67, adding that the violations committed by the aforementioned consignee include: no valid Certificate of Registration and Tax Exemption from the SBMA; and expired registration/ accreditation from the BOC since March 20, 2020.
He added that the consignee has no Import Commodity Clearance Issued by the National Tobacco Administration (NTA), and is not included in the 2022 list of licensed importers of tobacco products.
Chairman Aliño said that the total value of the smuggled items that were presented to the media on Wednesday amounted to P136,592,591.67. The agency chief commended the vigilance of the government agencies involved in safeguarding the country from illicit materials.
“Our mandate is in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s thrust of ensuring that smuggled items do not proliferate in the country. The SBMA, the BOC Port of Subic and the DA will continue to man the gates of the Philippines and bar the entry of smuggled items into the country,” he added. (MPD-SBMA)
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