A PHILIPPINE Senator on Monday called for administrative penalties on government officials who were negligent in following policies in the raid of smuggled cigarettes.
In a statement Senator Sherwin T. Gatchalian said some court cases filed against smugglers were dismissed due to technicalities.
Mr. Gatchalian added that officials of the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Bureau of Customs found to be repeatedly negligent in following standard operating procedures should be charged administratively and penalized to deter cases from getting dismissed.
He said that two cases reviewed by his team showed that cases against smuggled cigarettes were dismissed due to technicalities.
“There was an operation, and the smuggled products were seized but we lost the case because of technicalities. This should have been ironed out even before the operation. Even if the evidence is strong and we’re very confident that it will prosper, but when the case is filed, we lose because of technicalities,” he added in mixed Filipino and English. – Adrian H. Halili
