MikeLigalig.com

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) would soon donate P20-million worth of seized imported used clothing (ukay-ukay) from Hong Kong to thousands of typhoon 'Sendong' victims in Mindanao.

BOC Commissioner Ruffy Biazon said Thursday that five forty-footer container vans of used clothing were seized at the Port of Manila by operatives of the BOC Operations and Intelligence Office of the Enforcement Group.

Biazon, who identified the importers of the used clothing as Heritage Asia International Products Trading Corp. and Global Welltrade Trading Co., respectively, would soon be slapped with the appropriate charges in court for violation of Section 2503 for misdeclaration and Republic Act No. 4653 banning the importation of used clothing.

“We are starting the year with an even more intensified anti-smuggling campaign and faster filing of appropriate charges against smugglers in court,” Biazon said.

“I would like to start the year then, with a stern warning to smugglers not to mess with the Bureau of Customs or they will have their place in jail, where they rightfully belong,” he added.

For his part, Customs deputy commissioner for enforcement group Horacio Suansing said they issued a seizure order for the used clothing after enforcement group officials, lawyer Imelda Cruz and Capt. Arnel Baylosis, recommended the issuance of the corresponding alert orders for the five containers after weeks of surveillance and profiling of said shipments.

“We shall expedite that processing of the seized used clothing to enable us to facilitate its donation and transfer to the Department of Social Welfare and Development for its immediate distribution to the typhoon victims in Mindanao,” Suansing said in a statement.

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