Ochoa, 5 others sued over car import ban at Cagayan Freeport

BAYOMBONG, Nueva Vizcaya, Philippines – One of the major used car importers at the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority (CEZA) has filed contempt of court charges against Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa and five others for their alleged refusal to process the permits of imported second-hand motor vehicles that arrived at the special economic zone.

Used car importer Fenix (CEZA) International Inc. said the indirect contempt case filed before the Aparri regional trial court last Jan. 24 stemmed from the respondents’ “deliberate disobedience” to the court’s order allowing the importation of used cars at the special economic zone.

Jaime Vicente, president of Fenix, said they have no recourse but to file the case against the respondents, who continue to defy the writ of execution issued by the court in 2011 after the Supreme Court (SC) upheld the legality of the importation of second-hand vehicles at CEZA in November 2010.

Since last December, more than 800 second-hand vehicles, mostly low-end units, have arrived at CEZA through Port Irene in Santa Ana, Cagayan.

But car dealers at CEZA could not process them for commercial purposes or outside the special economic zone since the BOC, according to Fenix, continues to deny them clearances and processing permits.

“This is a blatant disregard of the rule of law,” said Fenix, whose company is one of the top-paying car importers in terms of Customs duties.

The other respondents in the indirect contempt case with application for temporary restraining order and/or preliminary mandatory injunction are the secretary of Finance, the commissioner of the Bureau of Customs (BOC), the Aparri Customs district collector, the head of the Land Transportation Office (LTO), and CEZA.

Earlier, in statement, CEZA, a government-owned and controlled corporation under the Office of the President, said that “goods and products destined for outside the economic zone are subject to Customs’ inspection, assessment, duties and taxation.

“As a matter of policy, CEZA does not allow any equipment, goods and other products to be brought outside the freeport without the necessary clearances from the BOC, LTO and Bureau of Internal Revenue,” CEZA said.

Fenix said the respondents continue to deny them permits for the used vehicles despite the SC resolution on Nov. 15, 2010, affirming the legality of former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s Executive Order 418 allowing the importation of used cars.

Fenix said the SC decision declared that only EO 418’s Section 2, which requires additional P500,000 as tariff duties for every imported used car, as invalid and unconstitutional.

“The rest of the (EO 418) provisions were held valid and effective. In short, the SC… declared with finality that importation of used motor vehicles is allowed, subject to the payment of regular tariff rates,” Fenix said.