BOC to investigate missing sugar says Sevilla

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MANILA – Bureau of Customs Commissioner John Phillip Sevilla said that the agency will be conducting an investigation regarding the missing 1,171 sacks of smuggled Malaysian sugar which were confiscated in Zamboanga City.

Customs Deputy Commissioner for the Intelligence Group Jessie Dellosa will lead the investigation together with a team. They will be leaving on Tuesday for southwestern Mindanao City.

According to Charo Logarta-Lagamon, Chief of the Public Information and Assistance Division, both Sevilla and Dellosa were “not taking this incident sitting down.” Another official from BOC said that Sevilla and Dellosa reprimanded the district collector, Miguel Saquisami, in Zamboanga City

“He was castigated by the bosses,” said the official who refused to give his name.

Reports said that Zamboanga City Mayor Ma. Isabelle Climaco-Salazar went to Saquisami after learning that the BOC only had 326 sacks of sugar retrieved from the ML Ylaiza Maye V in Barangay Bolong.

Based on the inventory from the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Philippine Coast Guard, the total number of sugar sacks was 1,171.

Meanwhile, some insiders from BOC confirmed that several personnel are involved in “smuggling activities themselves.”

“The problem in the area is way beyond the BOC,” said another bureau official.