MANILA, Philippines - Agents of the Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group have swooped down on a Quezon City compound, but was reportedly ignored by the operators of the warehouses allegedly being used to store smuggled goods in Quezon City.
The PASG operatives, armed with a mission order signed by then Undersecretary Antonio Villar, entered the compound of Glowide Corp. at 28th North Diversion Road, Balintawak, Quezon City. The broker, identified as “Tina Yu,” however refused to subject the warehouses to inspection by PASG, and reportedly boasted of her strong connections, including a congressman and son of a top government official. PASG blamed the operators of the compound, brothers George, Joseph and Reynaldo Lim, for condoning the broker.
Villar said the government stands to lose millions of pesos in unpaid taxes and duties if importers get away with smuggling goods. According to PASG, more than 15 tenants rent warehouses in the said compound allegedly containing smuggled items but only five warehouses were voluntarily opened for inspection.
Other warehouse owners refused to open their warehouses for inspection, according to compound manager Evelio Lim.
The suspected smuggled goods include imported garments, auto spare parts, electronic products, textiles, pumps, onions and veterinary products.
The auto parts worth P25 million reportedly belong to Delta Auto Parts. The items also include resins that were due for warehousing in Subic Bay Free Port but were “diverted” to the Quezon City warehouses. – Nestor Etolle