GRAFT RAPS AGAINST FAELDON, CRUZ, ET AL.

Nicanor Faeldon. INQUIRER PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

The House committee also wants Cebuana lawyer Mandy Therese Anderson charged for falsification of the attendance records of sports consultants at BOC

The House committee on dangerous drugs has recommended the filing of criminal and administrative charges against former Customs commissioner Nicanor Faeldon and his subordinates, including the chief in Cebu, over the alleged “Tara system” of bribery in the Bureau of Customs (BOC), a lawmaker said Friday.

The panel chair, Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, said the decision was reached Thursday during a congressional inquiry on the P6.4 billion worth of illegal drugs smuggled into the country through the BOC, but the committee had not yet finalized its report as of Friday.

Among those impleaded in the complaints was Cebu Customs Collector Elvira Cruz, who was publicly mentioned by Senator Panfilo Lacson Jr. as among the officials who received bribes from smugglers.

For the second time, Cruz declined to issue any statement to the media.

“No comment,” she told Cebu Daily News over the phone on Friday evening.

Cruz, who used to be quick in answering queries from reporters, chose to be silent over the recent controversy.

In a statement, Barbers said his committee had established that there was indeed a “Tara system” in the BOC through which Customs officials, including Faeldon, allegedly received payoffs for every shipment smuggled through major ports.

“I’m sure the members [join] me in the conclusion that there is really a systemic, endemic or whatever epidemic that is going on in the bureau. And this is the reason why smuggling of goods, including ‘shabu,’ was possible,” he said.

In a phone interview with Inquirer, Barbers said the committee has approved “in principle” the report, which is still being circulated among the House members to gather signatures.

Barbers cited Lacson’s privilege speech last Wednesday naming allegedly corrupt BOC officials and personnel, led by Faeldon, who allegedly received P10,000 to P15,000 per container. Faeldon was also accused of receiving a “pasalubong” or welcome gift of P100 million when he assumed office.

House members do not enjoy the power to press charges against individuals they deem criminally or administratively liable at the end of congressional hearings held in aid of legislation but may recommend the appropriate agencies to do so.

Barbers said the committee would recommend the filing of a criminal complaint against Faeldon for violation of Republic Act 3019 otherwise known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, and ask the Office of the Ombudsman to conduct an investigation.

‘Deadma’

The committee will also ask another investigating body, the Department of Justice, to charge Faeldon’s chief of staff, lawyer Mandy Therese Anderson, who earlier made headlines after calling Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez an “imbecile” in a Facebook post and subsequently accusing him of influence-peddling, with falsification under Article 172 of the Revised Penal Code.

During the hearing, it was revealed that Anderson was authorized to sign daily time records of basketball and volleyball players hired by the BOC and “made it appear that they reported for work” as technical assistants and intelligence agents when they were actually hired to play for BOC’s sports teams.

Sought for comment on the move to file a case against her for falsification of documents, Anderson, a Cebuana who finished fifth in the 2015 Bar Examination, said she would rather remain silent.

“Deadma lang po. (There is) absolutely nothing (I can say),” she told Cebu Daily News via private message on Facebook.
Anderson, a native of Barangay Capitol Site in Cebu City, got her degree in accountancy from the University of San Carlos (USC) before she proceeded to study law at the Ateneo de Manila University.

The committee will also recommend the filing of a complaint by the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) against Dennis Siyhian and Catherine Nolasco of the National Bureau of Investigation’s Anti-Organized Transnational Crime Division.

Siyhian and Nolasco allegedly failed to turn over the custody of the 500 kilos of shabu to the PDEA in violation of standard protocols and drug laws.

Gambala cleared

On the other hand, Deputy Speaker Raneo Abu moved that the name of BOC Deputy Commissioner Gerardo Gambala be removed from the list of possible respondents in the absence of documents proving his liability.

The dangerous drugs committee made the findings when it concluded its investigation into the P6.4 billion worth of shabu that slipped past the BOC’s green lane.

Faeldon has resigned from his post amid allegations from Lacson that he received a P100-million “pasalubong” in the bureau. Faeldon retaliated by tagging Lacson and his son in cement smuggling.

Aside from Faeldon, Lacson also identified several BOC officials, including Cebu’s Cruz, as among those who are receiving payola from smugglers.

Lacson also identified at least 44 bribe givers or “players” at the BOC. Among them were a certain Diogenes “Dennis” De Rama, Marty Pimentel and Jun Diamante — names that can be traced to some personalities in Cebu.

Cebu has a Diogenes De Rama who served as former mayor of Boljoon; a Marty Pimentel who owns a cargo and freight company; and incumbent Tuburan town Mayor Democrito “Aljun” Diamante.

Of the three, only Diamante came forward to deny any involvement in paying bribe money to BOC officials and personnel.