December deadline set for paperwork on Yolanda donations
The container vans that were consigned to Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma remain unclaimed at the Cebu International Port.
(CDN Photo/Lito Tecson)
The Bureau of Customs (BOC) Port of Cebu gave the consignees of donated goods for Yolanda supertyphoon victims until next month to file the necessary documents so the shipments won’t be abandoned.
Kenneth Sesante, BOC Port of Cebu chief of staff, said they cannot identify the port of origin of the 21 unclaimed container vans at the Cebu International Port because there are no documents.
“There are others with overdue freight charges from the shipping lines. Then after the freight charges the shipping lines also have charges. Maybe there are other consignees who backed out because of the large freight charges,” Sesante said.
He said some donors especially those abroad thought there are no documents needed to process their donations.
Based on the guidelines set by BOC for international donations, consignees who are registered with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) are exempted from duties and taxes.
Value
But the storage, demurrage, arrastre, wharfage, trucking/transportation, warehousing, stripping and stuffing are not covered by the privileges.
Unless prior arrangements are made with the recipient to shoulder these costs, the consignee is still required to settle the mentioned charges for goods to be released.
Based on the records of the BOC Port of Cebu, the container vans arrived at the port last December 2013 and January, February, March, May and August this year.
The document also showed that donated items consist of water bottles, first aid goods, clothing, shoes, household items, towels, assorted clothing and food.
Sesante said they still can’t estimate the value of the unclaimed donations since the items still need to undergo an inventory.
Auctioned
Consignees of the unclaimed vans are Philippine Red Cross, Cebu Archbishop Jose Palma, Co Wellmade Motors and Development Corp., PLDT Smart Foundation Inc., Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Jualyn Algarmer, Vic Jay Gonzal, Jared Rock Aces, New Faith Family Children Home, Barangay Atabay Hilongos (Leyte), Cross Point Church, ABS-CBN Foundation care of DSWD, Mayor Leonardo Javier Jr. of Javier town in Leyte, Apolonia Egbalic, Visayan Disaster Relief International Southern Baptist and International Care Ministries Foundation Inc.
“We are giving them enough time. If it reaches by December this means they are no longer interested,” Sesante added.
If still unclaimed after December, the BOC Port of Cebu will conduct an inventory to determine the donated items that have commercial value.
“We can also determine during the inventory the items that are for public auction. If there is commercial value then it will be auctioned but if none then it will be disposed or donated to appropriate government agencies,” he said.
When asked if they have a specific timeline on when to conduct the auction, Sesante said “as of the moment our priority is the inventory of the rice held at the yard without any import permit.”
“The government can earn income from the rice rather than the donations. The BOC is here to help (facilitate the release of) these donations since they are needed by those affected by supertyphoon Yolanda,” he said.
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