Babe's Eye View article

The recent order of GMA for the Bureau of Customs to take an "iron fist" approach against anyone who drops the name of the First Family in their transactions just goes to show that smuggling and namedropping have become serious problems in this country. The directive also came after revelations that some government officials are applying "tremendous pressure" on the newly-created Presidential Anti-Smuggling Group (PASG) for the release of P500 million worth of smuggled goods in several container vans recently seized by the group.

We hope GMA seriously means it when she said anyone who tries to namedrop the First Family will be arrested. All she needs is to exercise strong political will to go after these economic saboteurs.

In this country, people believe that namedropping can help them achieve success, or at least, give an impression of it. People resort to namedropping oftentimes to impress others and give a perception of influence, power and "connection."

In the Philippines, we have "social namedroppers" who want to create a sense of superiority and elevate their social status; then there are also those that are business namedroppers and political namedroppers. At times, namedropping is also used by people to take the easy way out, like when they want to avoid long lines, get rid of a traffic violation ticket, or get themselves out of a tight situation. But the worst kinds are those who use namedropping to engage in economic sabotage.

The fact is, close to P200 billion are lost in revenues every year because of smuggling. Outright smuggling—where goods slip in without passing through Customs—can pale in comparison to technical smuggling which involves the misdeclaration, under-evaluation and misclassification of goods.

A couple of years ago, Nueva Ecija farmers and Marikina shoemakers were almost driven out of business because the market was swamped with dirt-cheap illegal imports. Even today, almost every industry is affected by smuggling, from chicken to pork, garlic to rice to canned goods, tiles, resins, shoes, clothes and other items that flood markets, malls and groceries—often to the detriment of locally-manufactured products.

Just last year, the raid at the infamous Divisoria 168 Mall hogged headlines because it has reportedly become a haven for smugglers, with goods in the 2,000 plus stalls lacking proper import documents and receipts. This is tantamount to economic sabotage, and smugglers and tax evaders are being blamed for shortfalls in collection targets both for the Bureau of Customs and the Bureau of Internal Revenue.

Unfortunately, former BIR Commissioner Jojo Buñag has become a victim of intrigues at the Malacañang snake pit. He went the way of Cito Lorenzo and Lito Camacho, and he does not deserve the kind of treatment he got. I know Jojo Buñag to be a straightforward person who tries his best to do his work—as seen in BIR's performance last year when it exceeded collection targets by 22 percent.

At any rate, it's not only the smuggling of goods that should be focused on, but the illicit trafficking of drugs and firearms since these are being used in terrorist activities and pose a serious threat to national security. Drugs and firearms are brought into the country through various ports of entry and exit, and obviously, this cannot be done without the complicity and connivance of corrupt officials especially, those assigned in major ports like Subic, Batangas, Legaspi and of course, the Manila harbors.

Cebu is also being pinpointed as a major source of firearms shipment both to local and foreign markets on board passenger vessels, cargo ships and fishing boats. Other areas being looked at are Cavite, Pangasinan, the Ilocos provinces, Palawan and the southern backdoor with the help of local bandits, and these activities are rampant in the areas of Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Basilan, Agusan and Surigao, among other areas in Mindanao. Even door-to-door delivery outfits and at times, international aid organizations are suspected of being conduits for the illegal flow of firearms and drugs into the country.

The Philippines' long and irregular coastlines, with its geographic configuration and the presence of isolated islands, make it a natural cover for landing sites and storage points. It can be remembered that in the 2006 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR) released by the United States, it identified the Philippines as a narcotics source and transshipment country, even describing it as a "drug smuggler's paradise."

The country has also been tagged as a transshipment point for further export of crystal methamphetamine or shabu to the US, Japan, Canada, Australia and Korea. Certainly, the US can't keep a hands-off policy over smuggling activities along our shores since these also threaten their security, and so they're cooperating with local authorities in monitoring these clandestine activities, developing statutory frameworks, as well as training and other assistance initiatives.

Two years ago, Baham Mitra proposed life imprisonment for smuggling, singling out oil and gasoline smugglers whom he said have deprived the government of close to P10 billion a year in tax payments. The reality is, smuggling is not just a simple act of evading taxes or import duties, but worse, it kills jobs, causes companies whether big or small to go bankrupt and robs government of much needed revenues.

Since namedropping is being resorted to by these smugglers to carry out their illegal activities and get themselves out of a tight fix, legislators should come up with a law that would make namedropping a criminal offense. Smuggling can kill the economy. Namedroppers should be included in the list of economic saboteurs—and they should all drop dead.