When Bureau of Customs (BOC) Commissioner Yogi Filemon L. Ruiz was informed last month that there were thousands of balikbayan boxes abandoned in their warehouses, he immediately found himself on a trip down memory lane when he was still struggling to fill up one.

As an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) himself in 1995, Ruiz recalled how he and fellow OFWs in Japan would troop to various malls to look for items on sale that would be sent to their parents and other relatives back in the Philippines.

Bureau of Customs Commissioner Yogi Filemon Ruiz answers questions from reporters during the Manila Bulletin Hotseat interview on Nov. 22, 2022. (photo: Noel Pabalate)

“We would buy a large balikbayan box at the post office and I am telling you, it takes time to fill up a single large box. We became bargain hunters, we would ask and search for malls that are on sale so that we could buy them at discounted prices,” said Ruiz during the Manila Bulletin Hotseat interview on Tuesday, Nov. 22.

From shampoos and detergents to more expensive shirts, perfume and shoes, Ruiz recalled how he would feel accomplished once the balikbayan box is filled up and ready for delivery.

“It (balikbayan box) is a labor of love as we OFWs call it. I myself would be happy once I filled it up with all the items that I believe my family would like,” said Ruiz.

“That’s why I feel for the OFWs and their families when I was informed that there were thousands of balikbayan boxes that were either undelivered or abandoned,” he added.

Deliver ‘em all!

Last month, Ruiz coordinated with the Association of Bidders at the Bureau of Customs (ABBC) who became owners of the over 8,000 balikbayan boxes after biddings were conducted for those abandoned at the Portnet warehouse in Sta. Ana, Manila and at the Hobart warehouse in Bulacan.

The ABBC complied with the request of Ruiz to have all the balikbayan boxes for free.

photo: BOC

As of Nov. 21, Ruiz said they have already delivered over 2,800 balikbayan boxes to the relatives of the OFWs across the country.

“Our target is to deliver all those abandoned balikbayan boxes before the end of this year,” said Ruiz.

The free delivery of the balikbayan boxes is not a mandate of the BOC but Ruiz said they went the extra mile to have them delivered also as part of the commitment of the Marcos administration to look after the welfare of the OFWs and their relatives.

Warning

All the undelivered and abandoned boxes arrived at the Bureau of Customs on separate dates in 2021 and 2022 and were consigned to CMG International Movers, Kabayan Island Express, and All Win.

What happened was that while the OFWs have already paid all the expenses for the delivery of the balikbayan boxes, the companies that received the balikbayan boxes abroad failed to send the money for the payment needed by the deconsolidators in the country for the delivery to their relatives.

The BOC then urged the OFWs to take extra caution on choosing the consignees to spare themselves from being victims of such an incident.

photo: BOC

“Our OFWs should be very careful in choosing the company that would deliver their balikbayan boxes. We do not want their hard-earned money that is sent to their relatives through balikbayan boxes to be wasted due to the failure of their chosen consignees to deliver,” said Ruiz.

Ruiz also vowed to take legal actions against those who failed to comply with their obligation to deliver the balikbayan boxes.

“We are now finding ways to have all these businesses charged in court,” said Ruiz.

One-Stop-Shop

Ruiz also disclosed that they are eyeing the creation of a One-Stop-Shop in all ports across the country in a bid to expedite the processing and release of all balikbayan boxes.

He said the planned One-Stop-Shop in all sea and airports nationwide is just one of the policy measures that they are now pushing amid the perennial complaints on either delay in the delivery and disappearance of balikbayan boxes.

Others include issuance of Customs Memorandum Order to implement guidelines on registration of deconsolidators and coordination with other government agencies to add more teeth in running after them.

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