Duterte summons Customs chief Faeldon to Palace
Customs Commissioner Nicanor Faeldon was summoned to MalacaƱang by President Rodrigo Duterte after taking heat from two congressional investigations into the billions of drugs shipment from China in May.
During the hearing at the House of Representatives, Rep. Robert Ace Barbers of the 2nd district of Surigao Del Norte announced that Faeldon was being summoned by the chief executive to the presidential palace for a meeting on Tuesday afternoon.
“[T]he president has called for Commissioner Faeldon at 4 p.m. today in MalacaƱang,” Barbers told members of the House panel on dangerous drugs conducting the probe.
The meeting comes as Faeldon is under intense criticism following suspicions that some customs officials were involved in the smuggling of 604 kilograms of methamphetamine hydrochloride or shabu into the country.
Legislators were questioning how the illegal drugs, worth P6.4 billion, managed to pass through the Customs and believed that some people in the government agency might be conniving with drug syndicates.
House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez described Faeldon as “grossly incompetent.” Both he and Barbers have called for the resignation of the Customs chief following revelations during the hearings at the Senate and the House.
“Grossly incompetent, hindi lang po incompetent,” the speaker said. “Well, I support the call of resignation na sinabi kanina ni Chairman Ace Barbers dahil po kung ako ang nasa posisyon na iyon ay talaga namang kung meron pa akong konting hiya na natitira ay talagang magreresign ako.”
Babers turned his ire particularly on Faeldon and Neil Anthony Estrella, the chief of the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service, and called for them to resign from their posts because of the “embarrassment” they had caused the chief executive.
“Dapat nga mag-resign na kayo e to avoid further embarrassment for the president. You have tainted this campaign against drugs,” he said, referring to the brutal government campaign against illegal drugs which has been criticized by both local and international groups for the mounting deaths in its wake.
“You have few hours to think about your resignation. All of you, you should all resign,” Barbers told Customs officials attending the hearing supposedly in aid of legislation.
“Commissioner, sayang pinagkatiwalaan ka ng presidente. Nilagay ka nga dyanpara ikaw ang man of the hour e. You were from nowhere,” said Barbers, the son of the late Sen. Robert Barbers.
He blasted the Custom officials for two things: their “ineptitude” for allowing illegal drugs to enter the country and the “bungling” of the raid which could make it questionable and result in defeats in courts.
Barbers said that the two officials should not be in the agency since they did not have the necessary qualifications to hold their posts.
“Dapat wala kayo dyan puro kayo incompetent pala,” said Barbers who revealed that he recommended an individual for a position in the agency.
SOURCE:http://www.philstar.com/headlines/2017/08/01/1723589/duterte-summons-customs-chief-faeldon-palace
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