Will “Sunny” be the best disinfectant for a Customs bureau with a reputation for shadowy figures and shady deals?
The Palace said Monday it is confident newly-appointed Customs Commissioner John “Sunny” Sevilla can improve revenue collections amid reported corruption at the Customs bureau.
“We know for a fact that there is corruption in the Bureau of Customs. That has never been hidden from public view,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda told reporters at a press briefing at Malacañang. “That’s why he (Sevilla) is instituting a lot of mechanisms to make sure that the corruption in BOC would be minimized, if not, hopefully eliminated from that.”
“It’s a tall order for Commissioner Sevilla but we are certain that, given the new set of deputy commissioners and a new set of leadership through Commissioner Sevilla, we will see some improvements in the Customs collection,” he noted.
The report also said corruption has led to missed Customs collection targets.
A former high-ranking Customs official confirmed these code names.
“Alam ng lahat ‘yan. That’s common knowledge. Kilalang-kilala [na sila] na nagtatransact [sa BOC],” the former Customs official, who refused to be named, told GMA News Online in a phone interview on Monday.
“Malakas ang loob ng mga nasa baba kasi mayroong higher than the commissioner kung meron mang mas mataas [na kasabwat]. Ano ang ikakatakot ng mga ‘yan?” the source said.
“I hope may mangyari this time. Hindi pwedeng isa-isa ang pagtanggal, kailangan dyan palitan lahat,” the source also said.
Biazon resigned, but denied any wrongdoing. He also said he welcomed the opportunity to disprove the allegations.
Last November, the Bureau of Customs, the country’s second-largest revenue collecting agency, failed to reach its collection target.
