BOC: ‘Bureau of Corruption’

Customs commissioner Ruffy Biazon has a good reputation, but the corruption in the Bureau of Customs is so well entrenched that the job of ridding the agency of the bad apples has become a herculean task, to say the least. The BOC started out in 1902 and it’s no exaggeration to say that it has become so outdated not only in terms of technology, collection and other processes, but the entire system itself, making the agency prone to graft and corruption.

Obviously, President Aquino’s State of the Nation Address precipitated the resignation of deputy Customs commissioner for intelligence and former general Danny Lim, and deputy commissioner for administration Juan Lorenzo Tañada. But what’s really startling is that Lim – who described his job as more difficult than mounting a coup – is saying that powerful outside forces are interfering and keeping him from effectively doing his work.

Lim should start naming names and unmask these so-called powerful forces. Aside from the “kapal muks” Customs officials alluded to by the President, Lim has a duty to identify these “kapal muks” who call Customs officials asking for all kinds of “favors” and “requests.”

Biazon said his agency’s failure in apprehending smugglers stems from the fact that tipsters are afraid to submit affidavits or join them in entrapment operations. But isn’t it the job of Customs operatives to pursue leads that have already been given and initiate surveillance operations and investigations based on the information from sources? Why be so dependent on the participation of informants in entrapment operations?

Maybe the BOC should bring in a strong-willed government official to help them, like Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales who is not easily intimidated and never balks at the thought of going against powerful forces.  

A regular importer who’s been at it for over four decades and thus has seen it all in the business told Spy Bits that corruption in the agency is both systemic and systematic. Even if the head is clean, those at the bottom are rotten, resisting the efforts of the head to implement changes. Corrupt Customs officials   and personnel can make life hell for importers simply by sitting on the papers or making the paperwork very tedious and complicated – making the cost of doing business more expensive especially for businessmen dealing in perishable items.

The system of corruption works so well that it can actually make any BOC head look incompetent, with the “old timers” purposely missing out on collection targets and eventually succeeding in having the Customs chief booted out, our source said.

What’s been happening in Customs is an example of an entrenched system that needs to be changed – if not entirely abolished because that is the only way to stop the corruption that has gone on uninterrupted over so many decades. The businessman even suggests privatizing the BOC to ensure that collections will go to where they are supposed to go, and not end up lining the pockets of rotten eggs.

Meralco best buy for the week

Our stock market soothsayer tells us that Meralco stocks will be one of the best buys this week. It was a really brilliant move on the part of Metro Pacific chairman Manny V. Pangilinan (MVP) to acquire 10 million shares of the block recently sold by San Miguel Corp. at a very good price of P270 per share – equivalent to an over 10-percent discount from Meralco’s closing price of P302 per share prior to the sale.

It was also a good decision on the part of San Miguel Equities headed by Ramon Ang to sell off the 64 million Meralco shares (worth over P17 billion) because it will help pare down SMC debt and raise more funds for the company’s plan to diversify into power, oil and infrastructure. The deal is turning out to be a win-win situation for both Manny Pangilinan and Ramon Ang.

MVP would have wanted to acquire more stocks but had to limit their purchase to stay close to 51 percent because under the law, any company that acquires more than 51 percent of a listed company will have to conduct an expensive tender offer for the remaining stocks from minority shareholders for the same price. 

According to our financial seer, Meralco stock value is projected to easily go up by as much as 30 percent within the next six months. The efficient management of the MVP Group is certainly paying off. As the country’s largest distribution utility company would put it, “May liwanag ang bukas.”

China’s cycle of pollution

China’s huge appetite for coal-fired power is drying up its water resources especially in the north, where 85 percent of China’s coal is located but only contains less than 25 percent of the country’s water resources. Power plants need water to generate energy, which in turn runs water treatment and supply facilities – but this vicious cycle is aggravating water shortage and pollution in many parts of China. According to reports, half of China’s rivers have gone dry while those that still exist are severely polluted.

Coal mines annually dump more than 80 million tons of wastewater (a big portion largely untreated) into the Yellow River, China’s second largest river, which impacts the quality of water.  China is definitely faced with a tough choice: should it continue with the plan to build more coal mines to power up the economy and aggravate the pollution, or lessen production and consumption to avert a major water crisis in the future? Either way, China’s economy and ultimately its people will feel the impact, analysts noted.

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