Ombudsman suspends 3 Customs executives in melamine

MANILA, Philippines - The Office of the Ombudsman ordered yesterday the suspension of three officials of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) who are being investigated for their alleged involvement in the illegal importation of melamine-laced milk distributed in the local market in 2008.

Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez issued a six-month preventive suspension order without pay against BOC Operations Officers Emmanuel Reyes, Akmad Noor and Dante Crisostomo.

She explained that the continued stay in office of the respondents pending the administrative adjudication could affect the disposition of this case considering their positions in the bureau.

Crisostomo was the Customs examiner tasked to conduct documentary and physical examination of the goods for proper collection of customs duties and taxes.

His findings were forwarded to Noor for review as the Principal Customs Examiner and then to Reyes for another review as the Principal Customs Appraiser.

The Office of the Ombudsman had started preliminary investigation against the three BOC officers after the anti-graft agency’s Field Investigation Office (FIO) filed criminal and administrative charges against them.

The FIO recently filed criminal charges for unlawful importation, commission of statutory offenses of a customs officer under the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines, and violation of Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act against the three examiners and former operations officers Ruben de Rama and Paulita de la Cruz, Assistant Operations Officer Taha Cali, and Clerk III Felicissimo Javier.

Crisostomo, Noor, and Reyes, who are still working for the BOC, are also facing administrative charges for gross neglect of duty, grave misconduct, inefficiency and incompetence in the performance of official duties and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service.

Ombudsman Gutierrez has directed Customs Commissioner Angelito Alvarez to implement the preventive suspension orders and to promptly submit a compliance report.

Investigators said the Customs officials failed to verify the Certificate of Product Registration presented by Flyace Corp. against the sales invoice and bill of lading for Jolly Cow Slender High Calcium Low Fat Milk, which was found to have traces of melamine, a substance hazardous to human health.

Investigation revealed that Flyace presented a Certificate of Product Registration for Jolly Cow Pure Fresh Milk and not Jolly Cow Slender High Calcium Low Fat Milk.

An inventory by the Bureau of Food and Drugs in October 2008 showed that a total of 411 cases of 250 ml pack and 1,504 cases of 1 L pack of Jolly Cow Slender High Calcium Low Fat Milk with traces of melamine were distributed in the domestic market.