Customs inaugurates new security warehouse for Northern Mindanao

The Bureau of Customs Region 10 (Northern Mindanao) inaugurated Monday, August 31, its security warehouse and auction house in Barangay Tablon here.

The security warehouse is first of its kind in the country and it would house and secure items seized in port of entries in Northern Mindanao. These port are in: Ozamiz City, Iligan City, Macabalan Port in Cagayan de Oro, and Mindanao International Container Terminal (MICT) in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental.

The BOC said the new warehouse centralized the inventory of seized goods such as minerals, cigarettes, clothing products, cars and others. These “hot items” would either be condemned or auctioned off to make sure these would turn to government revenues.

Northern Mindanao district collector John Simon said auctions must be transparent and everyone should have an opportunity to bid.

As the COVID-19 pandemic rages, the Bureau of Customs is determined to be a top revenue collector for the government to fund government projects and programs.

“The existence of the warehouse will also help ease the process of auction. For the first time the BOC will also hold an online auction this month to limit contact among interested bidders,” Simon added.

“I want this customs district to be the model of all ports in the country,” Simon said.

Oliver Valiente, chief of the BOC-10s Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS), said that Customs Commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero came up with the idea of putting up a warehouse for seized cargoes.

Guerrero was the former chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

“When Guerrero learned of the number of container vans that have been stored at the yard at MCT, the commissioner said that it’s high time that the BoC transfer them to a warehouse,” Valiente said.

Valiente said that they were still assessing the actual value of the goods stored in the new warehouse. – Rappler.com