BOC inaction on 2019 'shabu' haul irks Barbers
The House Committee on Dangerous Drugs chairman wondered out loud Sunday exactly what Bureau of Customs (BOC) Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero has done regarding the discovery of 171 kilograms of "shabu" last year.
According to Surigao del Norte 2nd Rep. Robert Barbers, there has been no resolution whatsoever as to the May, 2019 illegal drug haul.
(MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
"I am calling the attention of Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero. It has been a year since (the discovery), how come no investigation was conducted, concluded, and released by the Bureau? How come no charges have been filed yet?" asked Barbers.
The lawmaker recalled that the huge stash of shabu (methampethamine hydrochloride) was uncovered inside aluminum pallets used in the shipment and delivery of tapioca starch.
"How come despite the endless promises of reform and reshuffle, the same people are still there in the positions of control and influence?" Barbers said.
“I am reminded of the PhilHealth scandal. The new head depends on the old people in running the agency. No wonder in both agencies, the same results are happening over and over again," he reckoned.
Barbers recalled that in 2018, then-Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon was replaced over the six-billion shabu smuggling mess. "Then his successor was replaced in 2019 over another shabu smuggling scandal, that of the magnetic lifters."
"Now, another scandal involving shabu is poised to place Commissioner Guerrero on the hot seat...the new heads who are given the marching orders to implement reforms do not succeed in doing it, but the syndicates always succeed in getting them replaced for their failures. Is it always a case of 'if you cant beat ‘em, join ‘em?'" said the seemingly frustrated solon.
According to Barbers, it is common knowledge that drug syndicates will always use ports to smuggle large quantities of illegal drugs, and every time it happens, the country is always at the mercy of the BOC.
He pointed to the dozens of arrests and successful operations made by law enforcers during the Enhanced Community Quarantine involving large quantities of illegal drugs as evidence of smuggling inside ports.
“Perhaps it is time to make our yearly investigation of the Bureau. If they are thinking that COVID-19 has provided them a camouflage, they are terribly mistaken. We are not sleeping. We need to see an end to this case. We appeal to Commissioner Guerrero to pay attention and not allow this case to be his Achilles’ heel," Barbers said.