Officials of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) gave contradicting statements on an incident involving members of a Philippines Airlines (PAL) crew who brought undeclared agricultural products into the country.
Airport authorities had confiscated alleged illegally imported agricultural products found in the luggage of 10 PAL flight attendants who flew in from Dubai and Riyadh on Jan. 10. The BOC x-ray screening had revealed various agricultural products, such as onions and fruits, that did not have the required clearance from the Bureau of Plant Industry inside the luggage of the crew.
Editor’s note: This article was updated on Jan. 30, 2023 to include the video fact check.
Watch the video:
Check out these sources
ABS-CBN News, SRO | TeleRadyo (16 January 2023), Jan. 16, 2023
ABS-CBN News, Sakto | TeleRadyo (16 January 2023), Jan. 16, 2023
Bureau of Customs, BOC-NAIA, BPI seize agricultural products from 10 Flight Attendants, Jan. 17, 2023
CNN Philippines, Customs spokesperson Arnold Dela Torre | The Source, Jan. 18, 2023
Official Gazette, Presidential Decree No. 1433, s. 1978, June 10, 1978
Official Gazette, Republic Act No. 1085, May 23, 2016
PTV, PANOORIN: Public Briefing #LagingHandaPH | January 19, 2023, Jan. 19, 2023
