Customs enlists help of PH Armed Forces, Coast Guard vs smuggling
THE Bureau of Customs (BoC) is seeking the help of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) to expand its anti-smuggling task force, the Department of Finance said on Tuesday.
In his report to Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez 3rd during an executive committee (Execom) meeting, Customs Commissioner Isidro Lapeña said that the PCG could beef up the bureau’s anti-smuggling efforts in the country’s ports and initially operate the patrol vessels that would be turned over to the BoC.
“We will be assigning people who will be trained (by the PCG) until such time that they are capable of operating the vessels themselves,” Lapeña was quoted as saying during the meeting.
The Finance department said Lapeña was referring to the patrol vessels that were acquired through loans from European banking institutions under the Philippine Port and Coast Guard Capability Development Project (PCG Vessels Project).
The Bureau of Customs is an agency under the Department of Finance. MAYVELIN U. CARABALLO
The post Customs enlists help of PH Armed Forces, Coast Guard vs smuggling appeared first on The Manila Times Online.