LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – Rep Eric Yap prodded law enforcement agencies and concerned government agencies to intensify their antis-smuggling operations and to identify and arrest all smugglers that continue to cause the suffering of the country’s agriculture sector, particularly the farmers from this vegetable-producing province, following the seizure of an illegal shipment of carrots.
The seizure of the illegal shipment of carrots that were mis declared as chocolates at the Manila North Harbor came several days after Yap and Davao City 1st District Rep. Paulo Duterte filed a bill compelling the conduct of a congressional inquiry on the alleged unabated smuggling of agricultural crops that directly compete with locally produced ones.
“May nahuling shipment galing China na naglalaman ng smuggled carrots na idineklarang chocolates sa Manila North Harbor Port. Sasailalim pa ito sa seizure and disposal proceedings para matukoy kung gaano karami ang laman at kung magkano ang halaga nito,” Congressman Yap stressed.
“Nagpapasalamat tayo sa BOC sa agarang pagresponde sa ating patuloy na panawagan na higpitan ang pagbabatay sa pagpasok at pagkalat sa market ng smuggled agricultural products. Ngunit, hindi tayo dapat tumigil sa nahuli lang at nakumpiska lang yung smuggled goods. Dapat ay makasuhan ang mga responsable dito at maipakita na may makulong para magsilbing babala sa mga gustong ituloy pa ang ganitong illegal na Gawain,” he added
Yap, since assuming as caretaker for Benguet in 2020, vowed to help farmers in their plight against smuggling and has been in close coordination with the BoC to help curve the illegal entry of vegetables in the country.
Mahigpit tayong makikipag-ugnayan sa BOC at iba pang ahensya para siguradong mapanagot ang smugglers na responsable sa pagpasok sa shipment na nahuli kaninang umaga at sa mga nauna pang mga kaso. At kung mapatunayan na may kasabwat na government official o employee dito, agad nating ipapatawag sa Kongreso,” he said.
“Meron rin tayong ipinanukala na House Resolution No. 108 na hinihimok ang Kongreso na imbestigahan ang patuloy na smuggling ng agricultural products sa bansa. Kasama ng ating mga kapwa mambabatas, layunin natin puksain ang agricultural smuggling na patuloy na nagpapahirap sa ating farmers at sa buong bansa. Mahalin ang sariling atin, ikulong ang lahat ng salarin sa smuggling,” Yap quipped.
The lawmaker underscored that it is the local agriculture industry stakeholders that are suffering the heavy impact inflicted by the unabated smuggling of vegetables because of the sudden drop in the buying prices of locally produced ones which is an indication that the smuggled vegetables have already flooded the local markets.
As the representative of the people of Benguet to the House, Yap pointed out that law enforcement agencies and concerned government agencies need to work double time to put an end to the smuggling of agricultural crops because it is slowly killing the country’s agriculture sector which had served as the major source of livelihood of millions of Filipinos over the past several decades.
He claimed that Benguet should remain as the producer of more than 80 percent of the country’s supply of semi-temperate vegetables to sustain the vibrance of the local vegetable industry that served as the province’s economic driver for several decades now.
