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Customs commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno ordered a full-scale cleansing of the BOC-Port of Subic, including changes in personnel and re-accreditation of all service contractors for the condemnation of goods
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The reorganization includes the replacement of key officials, including the chiefs of the Enforcement and Security Service, Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service, and Auction and Cargo Disposal Unit, and the deputy collector for operations
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BOC will also institute weekly rotational supervision over the collection district by the Enforcement Group deputy commissioner, Intelligence Group deputy commissioner, and the BOC commissioner to strengthen oversight
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The move comes as BOC on September 22 filed criminal cases, including against nine personnel from BOC-Subic, for allegedly being involved in the illegal importation of agricultural shipments in Subic port last year
Customs commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno has ordered a full-scale cleansing of the Bureau of Customs (BOC)-Port of Subic, including changes in personnel and re-accreditation of all service contractors for the condemnation of goods as part of an intensified drive to strengthen accountability and discipline within the agency.
“There is no more time for excuses and no space for those who do not follow the law,” Nepomuceno said in Filipino as quoted in a statement from the bureau.
The BOC chief said he has directed the full-scale cleansing of BOC-Subic “because the Filipino people deserve a Bureau of Customs that is disciplined, accountable, and worthy of their trust.”
“My message is very clear: do your job, follow the law, and serve the public with integrity or face the consequences,” Nepomuceno added, emphasizing that the agency is ready to file charges against erring personnel.
BOC will issue a customs personnel order implementing a reshuffling of personnel assigned to the Enforcement and Security Service (ESS) and Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS) at BOC-Subic.
The reorganization includes the replacement of key officials, including the chiefs of the CIIS, ESS, and Auction and Cargo Disposal Unit, and the deputy collector for operations “to strengthen accountability and reinforce command responsibility within the port.”
BOC said the move is also intended to strengthen command responsibility and ensure that the officials entrusted with safeguarding customs operations are fully accountable for their performance and actions.
READ: BOC charges 40 importers, brokers in anti-smuggling drive; 4 convicted since July
Nepomuceno will also require the re-accreditation of all service contractors for the condemnation of goods operating at the Port of Subic. The review will assess compliance with existing requirements and regulations to ensure that only qualified and legitimate entities are allowed to participate in condemnation and disposal activities.
To further strengthen oversight, the BOC will also institute weekly rotational supervision over the collection district by the Enforcement Group deputy commissioner, Intelligence Group deputy commissioner, and the BOC commissioner. BOC said this measure will ensure that concerns are addressed promptly, directives are implemented effectively, and accountability remains firmly in place.
The move comes as BOC on September 22 filed criminal cases, including against nine personnel from BOC-Subic, for allegedly being involved in the illegal importation of agricultural shipments in Subic port last year.
The cases involve six shipments misdeclared as “chicken lollipops” to conceal 15,029 sacks of fresh white onions and 2,164 boxes of fresh carrots that were imported without the required sanitary and phytosanitary import clearance from the Bureau of Plant Industry. The shipments were consigned to Berches Consumer Goods Trading and arrived in Subic port in June 2025.
The complaints allege violations to various sections of Republic Act No. 10863, or the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act (CMTA), arising from the alleged fraudulent misdeclaration of the shipments and the importation of regulated agricultural products without the required clearances.
The complaints against the concerned BOC officials and personnel likewise cite the CMTA, which penalizes, among others, the willful neglect of duties enjoined by law, providing an opportunity for or failing to perform an act with the intent to enable another person to defraud the government of customs revenue, and negligently or designedly permitting another person to violate the law.
The BOC personnel allegedly involved are now under preventive suspension.
Besides this case, Nepomuceno had earlier committed to pursue any Customs official or employee found to have participated in, facilitated, or benefited from illegal activities, following a recent National Bureau of Investigation operation in Sta. Maria, Bulacan that reportedly implicated BOC personnel in the alleged smuggling of imported chicken meat.
READ: BOC welcomes police complaint on two Customs officers, own probe underway
