Customs misses goal by P7B

CLARK FIELD, Pampanga – Customs Commissioner Alexander Arevalo said yesterday that his agency was P7-billion short of its target collections as of last August, but expressed confidence that it would even be able to surpass its P151-billion target for this year.

Arevalo said he has initiated measures to curb "technical smuggling" of petroleum products from which the bureau derives about 15 to 20 percent of its revenues. He has also ordered the adoption of a six-day work week for units dealing with importers.

"January was the only month this year when we were able to even go beyond our target of P100 million. The August deficit was the highest since last February," Arevalo said in an interview with newsmen here during the inauguration of the new Bureau of Customs (BOC) building donated here by SM Prime Holdings Inc.

He attributed low revenue collections primarily to the low peso-dollar exchange rate last July. "There were business decisions that we cannot influence," he said.

Still, Arevalo expressed confidence that he would be able to surpass this year’s target of P151 billion.

Arevalo said shipping associations have committed to support the BOC proposal for tankers delivering oil products to the country to declare their shipment 48 hours before arrival. "This will prevent them from retouching their import information," he said.

He added that the BOC has signed a memorandum of agreement with petroleum importers for them to use special "chemical markers" in fuel products. "Then we will go to gas stations to monitor whether what they’re selling have these chemical markers. If there is none, then they’re selling smuggled fuel," he said.

Arevalo also cited plans to extend working days up to Saturday not only in the BOC but also in banks in various ports and special economic zones nationwide, among port operators, customs brokers, the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry which encodes customs transactions, transporters, and even tricycle drivers who provide transport to port personnel during Saturdays.

Six-day work scheme, he said, would enable more time for business transactions and thus increase customs revenues.

"Going to work on Saturday requires culture change because we have to change the way banks do business. We have signed an agreement with bankers for their banks (at ports) to be opened from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. every Saturday. Then we have to arrange it with the Clark Development Corp., Subic Freeport and other economic zones because they are not into six-day work scheme," he said.

Clark Development Corp. (CDC) president and chief executive officer Antonio Ng said the personnel of one department dealing with importation concerns of investors at Clark have started working on Saturdays.

Arevalo said the P151-billion target this year is about 22-percent higher than last year’s. He noted that while his agency fell short by P7 billion last August, collections for that month were still higher by 21.5 percent than in August last year.