Saturday, August 18, 2007 Editorials: Wrecking seized smuggled cars
THE scene, as what a television reporter described it, seemed straight from a Transformer movie: backhoes thumping down cars, or metal crushing metal.
Seen on national TV, officials of the Bureau of Customs and the Department of Finance wrecking seized luxury cars at the Subic Freeport sparked conflicting reactions.
President Arroyo, who ordered the wrecking, was reportedly emphatic about sending a message that her administration is bent on eradicating smuggling.
But critics consider the act as a waste of effort and potential revenues.
Finance Secretary Margarito Teves admitted that the wrecking cost the government an estimated P30 million in auction proceeds and P10 million in taxes.
Symbolism
In a way, there was some symbolism in that wrecking display; it attempted to destroy the public perception that government is only after increasing port collection.
But critics insist that there is hypocrisy there, considering that the Arroyo government is valiantly trying to plug the fiscal deficit and needs all revenues it can get.
Even the operators of the backhoes had misgivings destroying those vehicles.
Campaign
Indeed, mere symbolism does not work; consider the drive against piracy and millions of pirated discs destroyed by the Optical Media Board without denting the trade.
Wrecking luxury cars may look good on national TV but its message is not as powerful as government conducting an honest-to-goodness campaign against smuggling.
That means arresting and convicting big time smugglers, including officials from the Bureau of Customs, the police, even from Malacañang conniving with them.
Thus, without a no-nonsense campaign against smuggling, the wrecking of 18 vehicles, seven of them luxury cars, will only be too much noise signifying nothing.
Assurance
But on second thought, wrecking the smuggled vehicles may have been good for the people’s psyche.
At least, with the smuggled items destroyed, they will be able to sleep with the thought that no money from the auction will line the pockets of corrupt officials.
