MANILA: At least 118,500 bags of rice from Thailand valued at P237 million not covered by import permits were apprehended at the Cebu International Port.
Of this number, 80,000 were found in a cargo vessel while 38,500 were found in 77 container vans.
It was Verne Enciso, officer in charge of the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service-Cebu, who recommended to Customs District Collector Elvira Cruz that a Warrant of Seizure and Detention be issued against the shipments, as well as the vessel.
As of yesterday, Cruz has yet to act on the recommendation.
Enciso said the shipments arrived sometime last March 2017 at the CIP but were discovered only recently.
It is the National Food Authority that issued import permits.
