60,000 bags of suspected hoarded sugar seized in Bulacan

[ASEAN NOW News]

T12 Polo Land Industrial Estate (Facebook photo)

 

MANILA – Authorities on Saturday afternoon discovered at least 60,000 bags of suspected hoarded sugar during surprise inspections in four warehouses in Guiguinto, Bulacan.

 

The huge volume of sugar was discovered when Bureau of Customs (BOC) personnel, armed with a Letter of Authority, wielded their visitorial power to inspect warehouses inside T12 Polo Land Industrial Estate, located along Ilang-Ilang St. in Barangay Tabang.

 

"Authorities found imported sugar from Thailand in the inspected warehouses at 50 kilograms per sack. At least two of the warehouses were half-full while one warehouse has sacks of sugar neatly stacked up to the roof," the Office of the Press Secretary (OPS) said in a statement.

 

BOC inspectors learned from the warehouse caretaker that the sacks of sugar imported from Thailand arrived at the Manila International Container Terminal on Friday night.

 

According to its Facebook account, the 15-hectare T12 Polo Land Industrial Estate has 56 warehouses with an average size of 1,000 square meters.

 

The OPS said authorities were informed that the import permit used for the Thailand sugar was the allocation for Sugar Order No. 3 (SO-3) approved by the Sugar Regulatory Board in February.

 

BOC officials are still verifying the authenticity of the importation documents presented to them by the warehouse caretaker.

 

'Artificial' shortage

 

Following the latest development, Malacañang is now open to the possibility of "artificial" shortage of sugar supply in the country, the OPS said.

 

"The huge volume of sugar discovered by authorities in the various inspected warehouses in Luzon has led Malacañang to conclude that the sugar shortage is artificial, brought about by the hoarding of sugar traders who want to rake-in huge profits from the sudden spike in sugar price," the statement read.

 

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. earlier directed Executive Secretary Victor Rodriguez to ask the Sugar Regulatory Administration to account for the 63,000 metric tons (MT) of sugar that was part of the 200,000 MT allowed to be imported by virtue of SO-3.

 

Earlier, the BOC also seized 140,000 bags of Thailand sugar at the Subic Port in Zambales.

 

The quantity is equivalent to 7,000 MT of sugar.

 

The Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service suspected that “recycled permits” were used for the importation of sugar in Subic.

 

Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles on Friday said the inspection of sugar warehouses will continue, in accordance with Marcos' intensified campaign against illegal importation of agricultural products.

 

Apart from Zambales, authorities also visited and inspected sugar warehouses in the cities of Caloocan and Manila, as well as in the provinces of Bulacan, Pampanga, Pangasinan, Batangas, and Davao.

 

City of San Jose Del Monte Rep. Florida Robes praised Marcos for his successful campaign in averting sugar prices from shooting up, as well as in blocking the questionable importation of the prime commodity.

 

“The series of determined moves that the President initiated to address an impending sugar crisis turned the tables against agricultural smugglers and food hoarders. Meanwhile, the consumers and farmers are winning,” said Robes, chairperson of the House Committee on Good Government. (PNA)

 

 

[bangon04]

gotta keep up the Diabetes quota in the Philippines.......