JV Ejercito questions effectiveness of Anti-Agriculture Smuggling Law amid lack of convictions
October 02, 2023
Senator Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito questioned
on Monday the lack of progress in apprehending large-scale smugglers despite
the passage of Anti-Agriculture Smuggling Law, which he authored in 2016.
During a budget hearing held by the Senate
Committee on Finance on Monday, Oct. 2, Ejercito expressed concern about the
effectiveness of the Anti-Agriculture Smuggling Law.
“My concern is, as the principal author of the
Anti-Agriculture Smuggling Law, it passed in 2016, and as we all know, it's now
2023. I would say, it was not really effective,” Ejercito said.
“Bakit wala pang nahuhuli? Seven years since
its passage, we have yet to hear of a large-scale smuggler being punished.
Panay dilis ang nahuhuli. So, what went wrong?,” he pointed out.
Ejercito noted that the Senate is currently in
the process of passing an amendment of the law, through his proposed
Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Bill, which will now include provisions on
hoarding, cartel activities, and profiteering.
“The President even certified the Anti-Agri
Economic Sabotage as a priority measure. It's an urgent measure ‘no, we are
hoping to pass it within the year,” he said.
The Bureau of Customs (BOC) said it is working
on the issue, having recently convicted four rice smugglers. It is also
considering the establishment of a special court dedicated to handling cases of
large-scale agricultural smuggling, aiming to expedite prosecutions and
convictions in this regard.
Ejercito also highlighted instances of alleged
irregularities in the assessment of agricultural products at different ports,
such as Subic, which may result in underpayment of tariffs.
“Hindi po ba dapat mayroon tayong parang blue
book o parang iisa lang dapat ang assessment sa lahat, bakit iba-iba? Kasi
pwedeng maging source of smuggling ‘yan,” Ejercito said.
“Kasi notorious po ang Subic, it's the
preferred entry of agricultural products and it's relatively easy to enter this
port than other ports, bakit ganon?”
He emphasized the need for uniformity in
evaluations and raised questions about the role of the Import Assessment
Service (IAS).
Ejercito urged the BOC to address these issues
and mentioned the importance of computerization and automation in combating
corruption within the agency.
The
BOC officials acknowledged the concerns and committed to providing reports and
resolutions.