Customs agents seize ceramics shipment

Alert agents of the Customs Intelligence and Enforcement Group (CIEG) scored a major victory yesterday in the government’s campaign against all forms of smuggling with the seizure of 34 40-footer container vans of ceramic tiles that were illegally shipped at the Port of Manila.

Customs Commissioner Antonio Bernardo said that the shipment that arrived over the weekend from China, Hong Kong and Taiwan were declared by their consignees as bathroom fixtures and molds which was an attempt to smuggle and cheat the government of millions of pesos in taxes and duties.

CIEG chief Deputy Commissioner Ray Allas informed Bernardo that the three shipments of ceramic tiles have a combined value of some P20 million. Computed taxes and duties, if the shipments had been properly declared, were placed at P100,000 per 20-footer container.

Allas said that had the attempt to avoid proper duties succeeded, the government would have lost more than P3 million in taxes and duties based on the P10,000 levy imposed for every container.

Bernardo said the attempt to misdeclare their shipments was to avoid payment of correct taxes and duties and could be considered technical smuggling. – Rey Arquiza