by Ducky Paredes
There are those who, suspiciously, attack the X-Ray Inspection Project (XIP) of the Bureau of Customs as inefficient, a waste of money and even claim that the giant x-ray machines that can penetrate metal as thick as engine blocks often break down. Of course, every innovation anywhere always has its share of nitpickers and naysayers. At the same time, such changes also affect what people at the Bureau of Customs can still get way with. These changes affect the Customs personnel in a very direct way. Thus, some of them do not like these changes and will badmouth them.
Imagine, for instance, the XIP detects shipments of illegal substances, including the chemicals used in the manufacture of prohibited drugs like shabu and heroin. Without a thorough examination of the cargo, this would not be possible otherwise.
In its first year of operation, these X-Ray facilities were instrumental in the discovery and seizure of 5,000 pieces of pornographic DVDs, 1,743 cartons of single and double CD casings, and half a million pieces of blank compact discs that could have been used in the illegal copying not just of these smut materials but also of pirated films and other optical media products.
Also seized that same year were 100 units of optical media replicating machines. This year, the X-Ray scanners led to the confiscation of 12 containers of optical media materials.
A fully closed container is one of the most effective ways of smuggling weapons and materials used by lawless elements. In this regard, the XIP also serves a crucial role in the fight against terrorism by preventing the entry of dangerous cargo. These include weapons, explosives, biological and chemical materials that can be used to spread deadly diseases and other items intended for terrorist groups, such as the Abu Sayyaf Group and the Jemaah Islamiyah operating in the Philippines.
Lawyer Ma. Lourdes Mangaoang, the head of the XIP, said that among the items that the bureau’s scanners detected were shipments of sodium cyanide, a chemical used for bomb making. Guns were also found among seized shipments of CDs and DVDs.
Our BOC was forced to start up f the XIP after the United States Homeland Security legislation began requiring mandatory screening, in ports of origin, of all US-bound cargo in the aftermath of the 9/11 attack of the Twin Towers in New York City. Release of shipments that do not meet this requirement can suffer delays of m ore than 14 days at US ports.
European countries have now joined the Green Lane Initiative mandating X-ray scanning of all exports bound for the European Union.
In the past, shipments going in and out of our ports were subjected to actual physical inspection. This was not only tedious and laborious but time consuming as well. Whereas human intervention in examining containers can take up to two days to finish a particular shipment, the BOC’s X-ray scanners can zip through the entire process in just 10 minutes.
Consider the fact, for instance, that based on available data, more than 2,365,000 containers enter the Philippines in any given year, with the Port of Manila alone unloading more than 434,000 containers annually. Now, how much time and how many Customs personnel needed to manually examine all that cargo? In that sense therefore, the X-Ray project contributes immensely to the facilitation of trade.
Stil, even with its 30 X-Ray scanners operating on an eight-hour basis everyday, the bureau can only inspect some 864,000 containers a year. This means that about 63 percent of the container traffic are not subjected to X-ray scanning inspection. This also means that smugglers still have good chances of getting their contraband through since the risk of discovery is still only 36 percent.
Clearly, in an archipelagic country with so many entry and exit points, there is an urgent need to acquire more x-ray machines to plug the leaks that make it easy to smuggle goods, or even just to misdeclare cargo.
The use of these X-Ray scanners is now prescribed as mandatory by both the World Customs Organization (WCO) and the World Trade Organization (WTO). Our country’s use of this facility has also drawn recognition from the International Finance Corporation (TFC) and the World Bank which noted the Philippines as one of 34 countries that introduced modernizing reforms that make trading easier.
Given the need for employing state-of-the-art equipment to maximize operating efficiency, it is inevitable that questions would be raised regarding the track record and reliability of the company that supplied the scanners which, in this case, is the Nuctech Company, Inc. of China.
Atty. Mangaoang stresses that the BOC scanners meet the specifications and requirements of the agency. These include low acquisition cost, full maintenance service, training for the operators of the X-ray machines, compatibility with the BOC’s existing selectivity system, remote monitoring and auditing capability, fast throughput speed, safe radiation levels and relatively low build cost, and low power consumption and operating and maintenance expenses.
As for those who would malign the supplier for being an unknown Chinese company, they ought to know that Nuctech is a leading company specializing in security inspection technology and holds the largest market share in the field of high energy security inspection systems. It has installed its security equipment in more than 50 countries in Europe, America, Asia, Africa and Oceania.
Among the countries that acquired the Nuctech system from China are Australia, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Norway, Bahamas, Thailand, Mauritius and the United Arab Emirates.
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Readers who missed a column can access www.duckyparedes.com/blogs. This is updated daily. Your reactions are welcome at duckyparedes@yahoo.com
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hvp 11.19.09
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