MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte is expecting the new Customs leadership to curb corruption in the bureau and to work closely with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency to stop drug smuggling.
Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo said narcotics managed to slip past Philippine ports because of corrupt personnel.
"(The president issued) the same directive—get rid of the corruption there. In fact, that's the reason why he fired the heads (of Customs units)," Panelo told radio station dzMM last Friday when asked what the president's marching orders to incoming Customs chief Rey Leonardo Guerrero are.
"They will be working hand-in-hand in eradicating the drug menace in the country. That is the marching order of the president," he added.
Last week, Duterte named Guerrero as the new Customs chief, replacing Isidro Lapeña, who was under fire over the reported entry of at least P6.8 billion worth of shabu in the country.
Guerrero, a former military chief, was administrator of the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) before he was appointed Customs commissioner. The president also ordered the relief of all Customs department heads to give Guerrero a free hand to select the personnel he trusts.
Notably, the president did not fire Lapeña, who had the same week rejected calls for him to quit and said someone was trying to dicredit him.
Instead, Lapeña was designated Technical Education and Skills Development Authority director general, a move that critics said affirmed Duterte's plan to militarize the Cabinet. Duterte has repeatedly defended his preference for former military officers, saying soldiers comply promptly with the orders given to them.
Lapeña is, himself, a former police official. Although the Philippine National Police has been a civilian agency since the 1990s, the former Customs chief graduated from the Philippine Military Academy in 1974 and was a member of the Philippine Constabulary, then a military command.
Palace: Lapeña's 'promotion' unconnected to drugs issue
While critics regard Lapeña's transfer as an indication that the president was not satisfied with his performance as Customs chief, Malacañang insisted that his new assignment had nothing to do with the drug shipment controversy.
"He (Lapeña) was really scheduled to be promoted to become Cabinet member (as TESDA chief)," Panelo said. Under the law that created TESDA, its director-general has the equivalent rank of a department undersecretary.
Panelo claimed that Lapeña had introduced reforms in the Customs bureau during his stint as commissioner. He said transferring Lapeña to TESDA would spare the former Customs chief from the "vilification" of smugglers and drug syndicates.
"We all know that the office (Customs) is graft infested but he remains clean and he instituted several reforms. In fact, the Customs surpassed its revenue collection (targets) during his time," the presidential spokesman said.
"The problem is either the people on top are making excuses or are not aware of what the people below are doing or maybe they are conniving with each other," he added. Lapeña, as bureau chief, was the person "on top."
Last August, PDEA agents discovered four magnetic lifters in Cavite that were believed to have contained at least P6.8 billion worth of shabu. Lapeña had said the magnetic lifters had tested negative for drug residue, a statement challenged by PDEA chief Aaron Aquino, who insisted that swabbing is not a 100-percent measure for determining the presence of narcotics
Lapeña changed his tune last week and acknowledged that the magnetic lifters may have contained shabu after the Public Works department found that the lifters were modified to hide contraband.
His transfer was announced within a day of that admission, which came after months of denials.