Press Release
September 11, 2009

Loren blasts Customs' shortfall

Senator Loren Legarda said today that the Bureau of Customs (BoC) must prove that a claimed drop in the volume of imports, and not its perceived collection inefficiency, is to blame for lower customs duties collected thus far this year.

"The BoC cannot round up the usual suspect whenever its collection falls - a claimed reduction in the importation volume. The BoC must prove that reduced importation for 2009 is commensurate to the big drop in its collection," said Loren.

The senator noted with dismay official BoC figures that it collected P18.251 billion in August or P6.7 billion lower than the P25.021 billion target for the month.

The August collection brought BoC's total for the eight-month period since January to P147.26 billion or P28.271 lower insofar as the target for the period is concerned.

Loren said that the BoC must improve its collection efficiency even as she urged all concerned government agencies to crack down on rampant smuggling, which is seen by many as contributory to the drop in customs revenues.

"Smuggled goods deprive government of much-needed revenues while posing unfair competition to legally imported goods and, worse, to local produce," she stressed.

Customs Commissioner Napoleon Morales claimed that the economic downturn is to blame for lower importation volume.

"At the very least, Commissioner Morales, when he reported to media his agency's shortfall, should have presented import volume data vis-?vis his agency's collection to support his contention," said Loren.

Loren said Morales shoud explain the P6.7 billion shortfall in August, which was markedly big compared to the P1.2 shortfall in its collection for July, during which it collected P25.1 billion against a target of P26.3 billion.

"What's troubling in all of these is that Customs is finding difficulties to meet its annual target of P273.3 billion despite its already having been revised from the previous target of P317 billion."

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