BOC seizes smuggled farm goods in Metro Manila

THE Bureau of Customs (BOC) on Sunday said it seized about smuggled agricultural products worth P150 million during its inspection of 24 warehouses in Metro Manila.

T he inspection was conducted by the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service-Manila International Container Port (CIIS-MICP), the Philippine National Police-Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (PNP-CIDG), and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) through Letters of Authority (LOAs) on 24 warehouses and storage areas.

T he warehouses and storages were believed to be storing smuggled agricultural products, such as fresh onions and fresh garlic.

“ We will be relentless in the fight against agricultural smuggling. Rest assured that the BOC is steadfast in patrolling our borders and protecting our local farmers against illicit traders of agricultural products,” BOC Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio said in a statement.

T he majority of the warehouses were located in Tondo, Manila, while one each in Malabon City and Binondo, were found with fresh onions, fresh garlic, and other food products, according to the BOC.

“ The bureau immediately acted on the derogatory information and coordinated with the respective ba- rangay officials and the PNP before the operation,” the bureau said.

“ Warehouse representatives acknowledged the LOAs and allowed the team to inspect the warehouses.”

T he BOC said its team temporarily padlocked and sealed the warehouses and storage areas after discovering the smuggled agricultural products.

The inventory of the goods in their respective location is scheduled to be conducted by the assigned Customs examiner and would be witnessed by CIIS and Enforcement and Security Service (ESS) agents,” it said.

T he BOC added that the corresponding seizure and forfeiture proceedings will be conducted against the subject shipments for violation of Sec. 1400 (misdeclaration in goods declaration) in relation to Sec. 1113 (property subject to seizure and forfeiture) of Republic Act (RA) 10863 known as the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act and RA 10845 or the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016.

T he BOC said case records will also be forwarded to the Bureau’s Action Team Against Smugglers (BATAS) for the “filing of appropriate charges and criminal cases against those responsible for the illegal importation of the said agricultural products.”

Jasper Emmanuel Y. Arcalas

Cash crisis hits Nigeria cocoa exports in fresh blow to world supply

NIGERIA’S cocoa exports are coming under threat from a shortfall of cash to pay laborers and transporters, further straining global supply.

T he country’s central bank in October announced it would redesign 200-, 500- and 1,000-naira notes in a bid to mop up excess cash and rein in inflation. As much as 2.1 trillion naira ($4.6 billion) has been returned to banks, and the policy has led to a severe shortage of bills as people have been unable to get new notes after depositing their old denominations.

For the cash-dominated cocoa industry, the crunch has left farmers unable to hire workers and exporters without money to get the crop to ships. The world’s fifth-largest producer of the chocolate ingredient risks not being able to ship as much as 30,000 tons in February, Mufutau Abolarinwa, president of the Cocoa Association of Nigeria, said on Wednesday.

“ We don’t have a quantum of the new notes now to pay for all the services like grading fees, handling charges, freight and some other sundry charges—all of which we usually pay in cash,” Abolarinwa said.

T he situation could further compound the supply concerns that have lifted London cocoa prices to a six-year high. Futures surged more than 6 percent this week amid reports of bean shortages in top grower Ivory Coast, fueling worries that some exporters there may default on contracts.

Upcoming cocoa plantings may also be disrupted as landowners can’t get enough cash to cover workers’ daily wages, spurring a shortage of farmhands to clear and weed farms, said Atangba Bonjor, a cocoa farmer in Ikom in southeastern Nigeria.

Nigeria’s cocoa exports have already slumped as poor weather and fungal issues hampered the maincrop harvest. The country shipped 36,571 tons in December, while January export figures have not been released. The cash shortfall is affecting fresh deliveries, said Isaac Arayela, a manager at the Ile-Ife Cooperative Produce Marketing Union, a cocoa-farmer organization.

“ We have no cash to pay our members for their cocoa supplies and they won’t accept bank transfers,” Arayela said. Up to 500 tons of the union’s produce is stuck in warehouses, he said.

Many exporters are suspending activities due to the challenges, said Kunle Ayoade, managing director of Agrotraders Ltd., a cocoa exporting company. Shippers often pay 100 naira per bag to laborers who load the beans on trucks bound for ports and a further 100 naira to unload them on ships.

Truck drivers are also paid in cash.

Staff spend hours in bank queues to obtain cash, which in most cases is not available,” Ayoade said.

Australian wheat

DRIER conditions in Western Australia could spur some farmers to cut the area planted to grain for the next crop after they just completed a record harvest, said the Grain Industry Association of Western Australia.

T he weather outlook is shifting rapidly back to a more “normal” scenario of less rainfall for the coming growing season, the association said in a release. “For many growers in the lower rainfall regions, there will be a pulling back in area cropped.” Subsoil moisture is still good in central and southern areas.

Australia is the world’s secondbiggest wheat exporting country and traders will closely watch weather trends in the next few months to see if the country can repeat the bumper harvest just gathered. Australian exports have helped cap global wheat prices after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine slashed supplies.

R ain is more likely to be below normal in Western Australia from April to June, the state government said separately, citing climate models. An El Niño in the Pacific and a positive Indian Ocean Dipole event are likely to develop from June onward, it said.

This may reduce rain over parts of Australia, but the “predictive skill for these events from late summer is historically low.” Bloomberg News

It was President Marcos Jr. who ordered the fast-tracking of the importation of refined sugar through the MAV mechanism as a measure to stabilize sugar prices that have remain elevated. (Related story: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/12/22/government-to-tap-mav-scheme-forsugar-imports/).

In a memorandum order dated December 20, 2022, Senior Agriculture Undersecretary Domingo F. Panganiban said Marcos, who is concurrently the agriculture chief, is “concerned” about the “very high” inflation rate of sugar.

A s the agriculture secretary, Marcos sits as the chairman of the SRA board as well as the chairman of the MAV Management Committee, the highest policymaking body on MAV.

T he DA-MAV Secretariat, which facilitates the utilization of MAV, made a call for applicants for MAV Year 2023 last October 2022. The

Warehouses

application period for interested importers under the current MAV year was from November 2 to 29, according to public documents.

T he 64,050-MT sugar MAV is part of the 504,050-MT sugar importation program approved by the national government recently to boost domestic supply and pull down retail prices that have skyrocketed beyond P100 per kilogram.

Imports under MAV must arrive in the country within a given MAV year, which runs from February until January of the following year. However, SRA officials have disclosed publicly that they want to manage and calibrate the arrival of sugar imports under MAV to ensure that it will not coincide with the milling seasons.

The SRA has been tasked to draft the import guidelines for sugar imports under MAV, including the classification and reclassification of imported stocks.

South Cotabato governor endorses funding for CARPrelated projects

By Jonathan L. Mayuga @jonlmayuga

TO boost food security and the overall performance of the agricultural sector in South Cotabato, Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. has endorsed a total of P439 million worth of projects for funding under the Agrarian Reform Fund (ARF).

T he projects include construction and rehabilitation of bridges, irrigations, canals, and farm-to-market roads of the identified municipalities in the province.

T he ARF is a special fund that finances the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) with the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) as the lead implementing agency.

and Lao PDR ink deal on nutrition-sensitive project

THE International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the government of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR) recently signed an agreement for a nutrition-sensitive agriculture project to address food insecurity and malnutrition among the rural poor.

T he project will especially focus on vulnerable groups such as women, young people and people with disabilities.

T he Agriculture for NutritionPhase II (AFN II) project builds on the success and lessons learned from the first phase (AFN I; 2016-2022).

In particular, AFN I showed that sustainable climate-resilient agriculture practices, complemented by building strong community-based organizations that work for their members, could lead to higher incomes and better nutrition for rural families.

It will also support the sustainable and inclusive recovery of the country’s agriculture and food systems after the Covid-19 pandemic.

“More than 60 percent of people in Lao PDR live in rural areas,” said Ambrosio Barros, IFAD Country Director, Lao PDR.

They depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. But most farmers are small-scale producers practicing subsistence, family-focused agri - culture, and have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

Hence AFN II focuses on the role of small-scale farmers in improving household nutrition and food security through sustainable agriculture.”

L ao PDR has seen significant economic growth over the last two decades, but the pandemic, climate shocks and the war in Ukraine have affected efforts to improve living conditions. This has taken a serious toll on rural families.

“Many struggle to meet household food requirements, making malnutrition a critical issue.”

AFN I was financed by the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) and managed by IFAD (in collaboration with the Department of Planning and Cooperation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, as well as the World Food Programme).

By promoting small and mediumscale agricultural development, including through home gardens, the project has led to better nutrition, with a decline in stunting and higher incomes reported across project areas. AFN II will scale-up AFN I in three provinces—Oudomxai, Phongsaly and Xiengkhouang—and in three others, in the south—Salavan, Sekong, Attapeu—and will reach 168,000 people across 28,000 households.

I n a statement, DAR Soccsksargen Regional Director Mariannie Lauban-Baunto said the endorsement of Tamayo to intensify the CARP implementation in the province, “mirrors the stand of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., through DAR Secretary Conrado Estrella III, to continuously pour various support services projects that will help improve the living conditions of agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs).”

We are happy that the governor is in tandem with the DAR’s crusade to help the ARBs and improve the agriculture sector in the country.”

Baunto added that close coordination with the Department of Public Works and Highways, National Irrigation Administration, municipal and local government units, and other CARP-implementing agencies would be done to ensure the effective implementation and completion of the said projects.

T he project is only the first phase of the P3-billion proposed projects for the entire province.

Tamayo is also set to request a supplemental fund amounting to P1.37-million for the completion of the processing buildings under the Village Level Farm-focused Enterprise Development Project.

T his he said aims to enable the ARBs to produce high-value and FDA-compliant quality products.

He also met with the representatives of the identified ARB organizations to orient them on the project and its implementation, including the policies on maintenance and sustainability.

T he project involves the municipalities of Tantangan, Tboli, Surallah, Norala, and Tupi including Koronadal City with 266 ARBs.

US-China: What if?

MiSattribUted to both eleanor roosevelt and Socrates is the quote, “Small minds discuss people. average minds discuss events. Great minds discuss ideas.” that is an exaggeration, but in most public discussions about important issues, there is a simplicity that does not look at all the concerns, and that can be dangerous.

Eastern Asia that sees the sun rise from the Pacific Ocean is highly complex and complicated. Sub-Saharan Africa was all colonized save for Ethiopia and Liberia. South and Central America, except for Brazil (Portuguese) all speak Spanish. The Middle East and North Africa are united under Islam. Europe has been at war with itself for 2,000 years.

No region is more geographically diverse with archipelagic states, island nations, and those sitting on the Asian landmass. There are 10 major and 1,200 minor languages spoken in our corner of the planet. The four largest world religions and countless “folk religions” are actively practiced. GDP per capita in purchasing power ranges from over $40,000 in Japan and South Korea to Cambodia’s $4,700.

The region, and particularly Southeast Asia, is facing a difficult dilemma over relations with China and the United States. Both “superpowers” offer benefits and disadvantages. China is everyone’s largest trading partner. The US is “The US.” No nation wants to be caught in the middle of any conflict between those two. But is it possible to avoid that situation?

Those that are calling for neutrality are naïve. There is no such thing as being neutral in a world of “globalization,” which is just another word for “interdependency.” The prime example of neutrality might be Switzerland.

Swiss banking secrecy, with the Banking Act of 1934, made it a crime to disclose client information to third parties. But the end of Swiss bank secrecy in tax matters arrived with the OECD treaty network signed in 2017.

Since 1979, the US has imposed economic sanctions against Iran. In March 1995, President Clinton prohibited the US from trading in Iranian oil. Shortly thereafter a US trade representative came to the Philippines to encourage the nation from buying Iranian oil despite the fact that less than 4 percent of our oil came from Iran. China, at the time Iran’s largest oil customer, was not on the trade representative’s itinerary for sanctions discussions.

With the war in Ukraine and the sanctions against Russia, we scrapped an order for Russian military helicopters. President Rodrigo Duterte decided to cancel it due to US sanctions on Moscow. Why take the chance to anger the US?

While we may want to stay out of any conflict between China and the US, it may be unavoidable.

In Europe, Nato is considering what they call a defensive move, an “Article 5 conflict” but also an “out-of-area” battle. An “Article 5 event” is an attack on a Nato member that justifies a military and economic response from all Nato members. But an “out-of-area” is an attack on a non-Nato member also warranting a direct Nato response.

In the unthinkable event of a breakout of economic and perhaps military hostilities between the US and China, how do we—and the rest of Asean—cope with trade sanctions against China that may come from both the US and Europe?

Rather than thinking about which side to stand on, maybe what we should be talking about—and this will be a difficult and complex discussion, not for simple minds—is what preparations we should be making to answer the question “what if?”

The law and our gig workers

Rising Sun

Many of us have read about the recent Supreme Court ruling ordering Lazada to reinstate five of their “illegally dismissed” riders whom they hired in 2016 and dismissed in 2017. the complaint was previously dismissed by the Labor arbiter, the nLrC, and the Court of appeals. Six years after the said dismissal, the highest court of the land would rule otherwise—in favor of the workers.

The issue of whether there is an employee-employer relationship in cases like this has been a topic of argument for decades, specifically where it concerns “independent contractors.” Many labor groups have sought the outright ban on contractualized labor. That is why to some people, the ruling of Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen is remarkable. The Court said that “Lazada failed to discharge its burden of proving that the five were independent contractors, rather than regular employees.” The Supreme Court found that the following factors were all present: the employer’s selection and engagement of the employee; payment of wages; power to dismiss; and the power to control the employee’s conduct. The Court also said that the riders were economically dependent on Lazada for their continued employment due to being directly hired.

Cyber attacks loom

Lito Gagni

the beauty of column writing sometimes comes unexpectedly, and this is one of those times. We are reprinting a letter we received from Mr. red abatayo, who says there’s a new form of warfare being waged in the it sphere.

Dear Lito, I think one of the main threats now is confrontation in the IT sphere, which could lead to a cataclysm. President Biden’s administration in its updated doctrinal documents in October 2022 declared the whole world and the global information space as a “sphere of its interests. Washington plans to spend around $11 billion this year on carrying out cyber attacks with the aim of controlling unfriendly governments.”

The United States and its likeminded people continue to promote extremely dangerous approaches in the digital sphere. Contrary to the desire of the majority of the UN member states for the peaceful use of ICT, the Americans, in fact, openly lead the case to the militarization of the information space. They impose NATO preparations according to the rules of conducting “cyber warfare,” and they try to conform to this international law. This, alas, fits into the confrontational, block thinking of Washington, which is pushing the

The Court said that “Lazada failed to discharge its burden of proving that the five were independent contractors, rather than regular employees.” The Supreme Court found that the following factors were all present: the employer’s selection and engagement of the employee; payment of wages; power to dismiss; and the power to control the employee’s conduct. The Court also said that the riders were economically dependent on Lazada for their continued employment due to being directly hired.

These reasons were enough bases to say that there existed an employeeemployer relationship between the employer and the riders, according to the Supreme Court.

In today’s economy where freelancers make up a huge percentage of our labor force, this matter needs to be looked at more closely and refer- enced upon in cases of dispute. The law is to be followed even if there is a contract, as mentioned in the Supreme Court decision on this particular case: “Protection of the law afforded to labor precedes over the nomenclature and stipulations of the Contract…. Thus, it is patently erroneous for the labor tribunals to reject an employer-employee relationship simply because the Contract stipulates that this relationship does not exist.”

According to Russia Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov, the number of cyber attacks on Russian IT-infrastructure in 2022 increased threefold. A total of about 50,000 hacker attacks were repelled last year. The largest number of digital sabotage is carried out from the US and other Nato countries, as well as Ukraine.

Riders and drivers have become a huge part of our daily lives. This became even more pronounced during the pandemic. They deliver our documents and goods, pick up our food, drive us around, and so on. And yet we often find them on viral videos being beaten or berated, on controversial shows complaining about certain injustices done to them. Many of them face challenges related to their companies’ policies, their customers’ unfair behavior, or risks on the road. Their number continues to grow, and I think it’s about time that we review the policies and laws we have in place world in 2017. world further and further towards total confrontation.

According to Russia Deputy Foreign Minister Oleg Syromolotov, the number of cyber attacks on Russian IT-infrastructure in 2022 increased threefold. A total of about 50,000 hacker attacks were repelled last year. The largest number of digital sabotage is carried out from the US and other Nato countries, as well as Ukraine.

Lately, exercises are held on a regular basis, including under the auspices of Nato, to practice strikes using ICT on Russian objects of critical information infrastructure. In December 2022, Nato conducted the world’s largest cyber defense exercise, Cyber Coalition 2022, in Estonia. More than 1,000 troops from 26 countries took part in the exercise. At the same time, the head of the exercise, Elliott, said that within the framework of training activities, along with the issues of countering cyber threats, the possible options of collective response were practiced.

The head of the United States Cyber Command, General P. Nakasone, announced in June 2022 a series of offensive digital operations in support of Ukraine. Currently, the West is using Ukraine to conduct illegal cyber attacks against Russia in order to hide its involvement in them. To carry out hacking attacks on the banking and service sectors, as well as other Russian infrastructure facilities, the Americans use a special project of the US Cyber Command “IT Army of Ukraine,” which involves both specialized cyber units of the AFU and Ukrainian Internet activists.

Western information-technical influence from the territory of Ukraine on the Russian infrastructure can cause uncontrollable processes in cyberspace and lead to significant damage to other countries.

Washington’s transfer of malicious programs to the Kyiv regime will inevitably lead to their leakage to the black market and further use by Ukrainian and other hacker groups for criminal purposes, including against digital resources of international organizations and individual states. This has happened more than once. The Shadow broker group stole elements of Windows operating system source codes from the US NSA, which were used to create the WannaCry ransom-ware virus that blocked the work of numerous organizations around the

The US and its allies this year intend to carry out cyber attacks on Russia’s power industry facilities. The West seeks to disable the Russian energy system in order to de-energize the country’s residential and social assets and provoke large-scale protests. At the same time, according to Washington’s plan, power outages should contribute to the disruption of the functioning of key administrative, military and defense-industrial facilities, airports and seaports, railway stations, as well as the agrarian complex of Russia.

This is evidenced by the fact that at the last meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee for an Information Crimes Convention in Vienna on January 9-20 this year, the Americans and their allies tried to sabotage the negotiation process in order to avoid additional obligations to provide electronic evidence of crimes. In doing so, they exposed their criminal intentions.

Consequently, it is to be expected that destructive US cyber attacks on Russia’s digital infrastructure will lead to a new escalation of tensions between the two nuclear powers. Best regards, Red Abatayo.