EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 45
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 45 - CREATING A
PRESIDENTIAL ANTI-SMUGGLING TASK FORCE TO INVESTIGATE AND PROSECUTE
CRIMES INVOLVING LARGE—SCALE SMUGGLING AND OTHER FRAUDS UPON CUSTOMS
AND PROVIDING MEASURES TO EXPEDITE SEIZURE PROCEEDINGS
WHEREAS,
large-scale smuggling and frauds upon customs and other related illegal
practices undermine the national interest and security;
WHEREAS, the prevention and suppression of smuggling and other related
fraudulent practices against customs laws is one of the urgent concerns
of the administration;
WHEREAS, the creation of a presidential body particularly tasked to
investigate and prosecute large-scale smuggling and other illegal or
unlawful importations is necessary to effectively counteract this form
of economic sabotage and strengthen our system of enforcement of
revenue laws;
WHEREAS, the Administrative Code of 1987 empowers the President with
the continuing authority to reorganized the Office of the President and
to transfer functions from one department or agency to another;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH EJERCITO ESTRADA, President of the Republic
of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do
hereby order:
Section 1. Creation Of Task Force. — There is hereby
created a Presidential Anti-Smuggling Task Force, hereinafter called
the “Task Force,” under the control and supervision of the Office of
the President principally to combat smuggling, unlawful importations
and other frauds upon customs committed in large scale or by organized
and syndicated groups.
Sec. 2. Composition. — The Task Force shall be
composed of senior officials from the following agencies: The Office of
the President, the Department of Finance, the Department of Justice,
the Bureau of Customs, the Bureau of Internal Revenue, the Economic
Intelligence and Investigation Bureau, the National Bureau of
Investigation, the Philippine National Police and the Intelligence
Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
The Task Force shall be headed by a qualified senior law enforcement
officer to be designated by the President. He shall be assisted by a
deputy who shall likewise be designated by the President.
Sec. 3. Powers and Functions. — The Task Force
shall have the following powers and functions:
1.
To prepare and implement appropriate and effective measures to prevent
and suppress large-scale smuggling and other prohibited and unlawful
importations;
2. To effect
searches and seizures conformably with the provisions of the Tariff and
Customs Code, as amended, and to cause or direct the immediate arrest,
investigation and speedy prosecution of smugglers and illegal importers;
3. To conduct
intelligence and counter-intelligence on smuggling and other unlawful
importations, including the monitoring of situations, circumstances,
activities of individuals, groups and entities who are involved or who
are reasonably believed to be involved in smuggling activities;
4. To select
and recruit personnel from within the PNP and other law enforcement
agencies for assignment to the Task Force with the conformity of the
office or agency concerned;
5. To enlist
the assistance of any department, bureau, office or agency or
instrumentality of the government, including government-owned or
controlled corporations to carry out its functions, including the use
of their respective personnel, facilities and resources;
6. To perform
such functions and carry out such activities as may be directed by the
President.
Sec. 4. Offenses Covered. — The Task Force shall
have the authority to take cognizance of the following crimes:
a)
Smuggling and customs frauds committed by organized or syndicated
groups or criminal enterprises.
b) Smuggling
and other false and fraudulent importations or violations of customs
laws committed in large scale.
c) Such other
cases of violations of the Tariff and Customs Code, as amended, as the
President may determine from time to time.
Smuggling and other customs frauds and violations of customs laws shall
be deemed committed by a syndicate if carried out by a group of three
or more persons conspiring or confederating with or mutually helping
one another in carrying out the criminal acts. They shall be deemed
committed in large scale if committed in connivance with officials and
employees of the Bureau of Customs or where the determinable value of
importations exceeds P1 Million.
Sec. 5. Organizational Support. — The Task Force
shall organize technical, administrative and special staffs composed of
personnel assigned or detailed to the Task Force by the different
agencies called to assist the Task Force. The head of the Task Force
shall delineate the respective responsibilities of the supporting
staffs.
Sec. 6. Special Team of Prosecutors. — To assist
the Task Force in the expeditious prosecution of criminal and other
cases involving syndicated and large scale smuggling and customs
frauds, a Special Team of Prosecutors from the Department of Justice
shall be assigned to the Task Force. The team shall have the following
powers and duties:
1.
To evaluate evidence gathered by the Task Force and to determine
whether or not violations of the Tariff Code or Customs Code, as
amended, and other related laws and regulations have been
committed;
2. To initiate
and conduct preliminary investigations and to file and prosecute the
appropriate administrative and criminal charges against person(s)
responsible for the violation of customs law;
3. To
recommend the issuance of warrant of seizure and detention in
appropriate cases.
The Special Team of Prosecutors may be assisted by lawyers selected and
recruited by the Task Force from the National Bureau of Investigation,
the Bureau of Customs and the Economic Intelligence and Investigation
Bureau.
Sec. 7. Special Pool Of Hearing Officers. — A
Special Pool of Hearing Officers in the Bureau of Customs under the
Deputy Commissioner for Revenue Collection and Monitoring Group is
hereby created to specifically attend to or hear seizure cases arising
from unlawful importations and violations of customs laws being
investigated by the Task Force.
In addition to the powers granted under the Tariff and Customs Code, as
amended and under customs rules and regulations issued pursuant
thereto, the Hearing Officers shall have the authority to summon
witnesses, administer oaths, or take testimony or evidence relevant to
the investigation by subpoena ad testificandum and subpoena duces
tecum, to rule on motions and issues presented during the proceedings
and to do such other acts necessary and incidental to the discharge of
their functions.
The Special Pool of Hearing Officers shall be composed of at least six
(6) members to be selected from the various legal units of the Bureau
of Customs.
Sec. 8. Summary Proceedings. — The seizure
proceedings shall be terminated within a period of thirty (30) days
from the date of commencement of hearing. Subject to the essential
requirement of due process, the technicalities of law and procedure and
the rules governing the admissibility and sufficiency of evidence
obtaining in courts of law shall not strictly apply.
The decision on seizure proceedings shall be rendered by the Collector
of Customs within five (5) days from termination of the formal hearing.
Non-compliance with the mandatory period for termination of the
proceedings and rendition of decision shall subject the responsible
officials to suspension or dismissal from the service as the
circumstances shall warrant.
Sec. 9. Authorizations. — The Commissioner of
Customs shall, if necessary, issue such authorizations and orders
required under the Tariff and Customs Code, as amended, for all
purposes relevant to the exercise and performance of the powers and
functions of the Task Force.
Sec. 10. Funding. — Subject to the usual audit,
the Task Force shall be provided with an initial annual allocation of
TWENTY MILLION PESOS to be drawn from the President’s Contingency Fund
and from the government’s savings. Thereafter, appropriations for the
succeeding years shall be incorporated in the budget proposal of the
Office of the President.
Sec. 11. Operating Guidelines. — The Task Force
shall adopt, in coordination with customs law enforcement agencies,
such operating guidelines as may be necessary to implement this
Executive Order, subject to the approval of the President. It shall
submit to the President reports of its activities with appropriate
recommendations for the information and guidance of the President.
Sec. 12. Coordinating Instructions. — The
objective of this issuance is to focus and maximize the impact on
organized and large-scale smuggling and related crimes to be addressed
by the Task Force operating directly under the Office of the President,
while the Philippine National Police shall continue to be the primary
general law enforcement agency of the country pursuant to Republic Act
No. 6875 *, as amended. Accordingly, close coordination and cooperation
shall be undertaken by the head of the Task Force, the Chief of the PNP
and other heads of customs law enforcement agencies, to insure
effective and efficient prosecution of the anti-smuggling campaign.
Sec. 13. Repealing Clause. — All orders,
issuances, rules and regulations, or parts thereof which are
inconsistent with this Executive Order are hereby repealed or modified
accordingly.
Sec. 14. Effectivity. — This Executive Order shall
take effect immediately.
DONE in the City of Manila,
this 3rd day of December in the year of Our Lord, Nineteen Hundred and
Ninety-Eight.
* Copied verbatim from documents obtained directly
from the Malacañang records (Republic Act No. 6875 should read
as Republic Act No. 6975).