Cardinal Vidal intercedes for Customs exec

CEBU CITY — The escape of the MV Great Faith and its cargo of smuggled rice from Customs custody here last Christmas Eve, allegedly facilitated by a multimillion-peso bribe, has taken on a new twist.

Cebu Archbishop Ricardo Cardinal Vidal has written President Arroyo to intercede for former Customs deputy collector Santiago Maravillas, one of several ranking officials sought to be charged over the incident.

In a letter dated March 4, Vidal appealed to the President to give Maravillas "a just and fair inquiry and not a rush to judgment."

Vidal said he was saddened by the news that Maravillas was among those recommended by a Department of Finance investigating panel to be charged in connection with the incident.

If indicted, Maravillas will face criminal and administrative charges of incompetence and inefficiency. It is widely believed though that Maravillas was merely set up by those involved.

Performance

Vidal told the President that Maravillas had a record of 29 apprehensions of smuggled rice shipments valued at P69 million and had been commended by Customs Commissioner Titus Villanueva himself for his laudable performance.

Maravillas, in fact, was the one who single-handedly caused the apprehension of the Great Faith and its cargo of more than 20,000 bags of smuggled rice.

"Your Excellency, with this laudable record of performance, I believe that Collector Maravillas deserves a just and fair inquiry and not a rush to judgment. It is for this reason that I am writing to you... hoping that in expressing my sadness over this recent development, (you) may know and may take kind attention to look into this matter," Vidal said in his letter, a copy of which was faxed to The Freeman by an anonymous source.

A check with Presidential Political Liaison Officer Elberto Emphasis confirmed the veracity of the letter. Emphasis said the President, in fact, received the letter last Wednesday.

There has been no available comment from Mrs. Arroyo regarding the letter of Vidal.

‘I’m innocent’

Maravillas, who was among those whom the President ordered relieved in the aftermath of the incident, admitted he went to Vidal last week to seek his intercession for a fair and just investigation.

"I am innocent and God is my witness," he said.

Maravillas is expected to turn state witness and shed more light into the escape of the ship, which was allegedly facilitated by a P10-million bribe that reached even officials in Manila.

The ship’s disappearance has also prompted a congressional inquiry.

Relieved along with Maravillas were his immediate boss, then district collector for Cebu Roberto Sacramento, and 11 other Customs officials and personnel.

After single-handedly apprehending the Great Faith and its cargo of smuggled rice on Sept. 13, 2001, Maravillas immediately issued a warrant of seizure and detention the following day.

But on Oct. 16, 2001, Sacramento lifted the warrant and ordered the release of the ship and its cargo.

On Dec. 12, Sacramento was rebuffed by Villanueva himself, who not only reversed his directive to release the ship and its cargo but also ordered both forfeited in favor of the government.

Spurious papers

Contrary to the findings of Sacramento, Villanueva discovered that the documents presented during the hearings were all spurious.

Despite the Customs commissioner’s forfeiture order, Sacramento apparently made no attempt to remove the cargo from the ship and have it stored at the nearest warehouse of the National Food Authority as was the standard procedure.

On Christmas Eve, the Great Faith eventually made its escape from the Ouano wharf in Mandaue City where it had been under Customs guard.

Despite a supposedly massive sea and air search, the ship has not been seen or heard since.

At the time of the escape, Sacramento designated Maravillas as the acting Customs collector while he went on leave.

Tip of the iceberg

Rep. Antonio Cuenco has described the escape of the Great Faith as just the tip of the iceberg of rampant smuggling activities in Cebu where Customs officials are allegedly conniving with smugglers.

The names of at least 12 Cebu smugglers were expected to be divulged in yesterday’s resumption of the congressional inquiry.

These smugglers, Cuenco said, have not been only bringing in rice but also luxury cars, spare parts and used clothing.

The congressional panel is also looking into the disappearance of 15,000 bags of smuggled rice from the M/V Panda and the suspicious arrival of the M/V Morning Princess with 30,000 bags of rice. — Freeman News Service