The Bureau of Customs (BOC) may just resort to destroying the Discaya couple's luxury vehicles if there are still no takers on their second or succeeding auctions.

Chris Bendijo, BOC deputy chief of staff, said Monday, Dec. 1, that the agency has the discretion to condemn the controversial contractor couple's illegally-acquired vehicles if the government will not yet be able to dispose of them.

His remark came as the agency is set to hold on Dec. 5 the second round of auction for the Discayas' luxury vehicles, including the 2023 Rolls-Royce Cullinan, the 2022 Bentley, the 2022 Toyota Tundra and the 2023 Toyota Sequoia.

"Remember that aside from the disposition based on sale, we can resort to condemnation or sirain na lang talaga 'yung mga vehicles na yan (just destroy those vehicles). So that is still an available option," he said in a press conference at the Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) after attending a meeting with members of the technical working group (TWG) tasked to recover assets acquired through corruption in the anomalous flood control projects.

"It's really an exercise of discretion on the part of the commissioner. In fact, we could have dispensed with the auction and went straight to the condemnation," he added.

But for now, Bendijo says the government's priority is to convert them into cash by offering the vehicles at lower prices.

"Although the inclination of Commissioner Ariel [Nepomuceno] is to convert it into revenue, kasi (because), considering the state of our country, we are in need more of a budget, rather than, you know, destroying the forfeited items," he said.

The vehicles to be sold during second auction at 10 a.m. Dec. 5 are the recovered luxury vehicles that were not sold on the first auction.

During the first auction last Nov. 20, the government was able to earn at least P38 million from the sale of a 2019 Mercedes-Benz G500 Brabus, a 2022 Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG and a 2022 Lincoln Navigator.

Under the new bidding mechanics, bidders may now make direct offers, unlike before where the BOC set the floor price.

Bendijo said the agency did that because "by lowering the price, we are encouraging and enticing more bidders to participate, which would eventually lead to better competition".

"In terms of perhaps the floor price, it's no longer determined by the BOC. It will now be coming from the offeror," he said.

"And if that is acceptable, and if there is no other offer that would be accepted within a given time frame, then the BOC can consider disposing of that asset under that direct offer system," he added.

But at end of the day, he said, the BOC commissioner would still have the prerogative to accept or deny the offers.