BOC clarifies delays in rice shipments not caused by port congestion
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00:00Reports of congestion in the ports of Manila have been grossly exaggerated.
00:06Instead, the real problem is rice traders and consignees abusing the rules of the PPA
00:12in the hopes of jacking up the cost of stockpiled rice in container vans.
00:17But the PPA is fighting back and has set a deadline of October 1
00:21for these traders to offload their merchandise at the pier in this report.
00:26The Philippine Ports Authority has given importers and consignees until October 1
00:33to remove imported rice shipments that have been sitting at ports
00:37for over 30 days after being cleared with taxes and tariffs.
00:55The PPA earlier revealed that half of the 888 containers of imported rice
01:09in two major Manila ports had been extended storage or overstaying status.
01:14Nearly 300 containers have been pulled out since the report.
01:25Meanwhile, advocacy group Bantay Bigas is calling for stopping hoarding charges against importers.
01:55The Samahang Industria ng Agrikultura or SINAG has called for the blacklisting of importers
02:10who are allegedly stockpiling rice supplies at ports.
02:14According to the Bureau of Plant Industry, approximately 3 million metric tons of rice
02:19have been permitted to enter the Philippines since January of this year.
02:23SINAG emphasized that consumers should experience a drop in rice prices
02:27following the approval of reduced tariffs on imported rice.
02:31What we are still seeing is that the price should drop
02:37because there are already 16 million tons of rice that have been imported.
02:45If the PPA is really building a warehouse, their permit should be suspended.
02:53That's why the Blacklist of the Bureau of Plant Industry.
02:58The BPI is set to conduct inspections to determine whether the quality of imported rice
03:03remains acceptable and safe for consumption.
03:06We are concerned about food safety.
03:08This is the only one that has been loaded for 275 days.
03:11So, it has been 9 months since it was loaded.
03:14Plus, we need to see when it was harvested.
03:17Because if it lasts for a year, the rice will be old.
03:22We just would like to ensure the food safety of the rice.
03:26Kalei Zalpardilla for the New and Better Philippines.
03:31The Bureau of Customs or BOC clarified the delays in rice shipments
03:36are not caused by port congestion.
03:38According to the BOC, 258 shipping containers with rice are still at the Port of Manila.
03:44237 of these are cleared for release following the payment of duties and taxes,
03:50while the remaining 21 containers are still being processed for clearance.
03:54630 rice containers remain at the Manila International Container Port
03:59where 492 have been cleared for release.
04:02The BOC also stressed no rice shipments have surpassed the 30-day period
04:07set by the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act.