Customs Commissioner Sevilla resigns, cites pressure from some groups

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Sunny_Sevila_2This time, it’s real. John Phillip Sevilla has resigned as commissioner of the Bureau of Customs (BOC).

At a press conference today, Sevilla announced he handed in his letter of resignation to President Benigno Aquino yesterday. The announcement comes three days after he flatly denied rumors of his leaving his post.

Sevilla cited growing political pressure for him to appoint certain officials as his reason for wanting to leave the service. He admitted there is greater political push from some sectors now that the elections are just a year away.

He said politics should ideally be divorced from the work of the BOC. There is long-running talk that the BOC is used by some government officials to raise funds during elections.

There is no word yet on who will replace Sevilla but there is speculation that former Customs commissioner Alberto Lina will take his place. Lina is the founder of the Lina Group of Companies, which includes transport entities Air 21 and Cargohaus.

Sevilla, who before his stint at BOC was Finance undersecretary, said many have told him to just stay put and endure the pressure but that he was “only human” and could take no more.

He cited pressure for him – although received second hand and never confirmed — by the religious group Iglesia ni Cristo to appoint Teddy Raval, an employee at the BOC Intellectual Property Rights Division, as director of the Enforcement and Security Services (ESS). Raval has been with the BOC since 2007.

In addition, Sevilla claimed there was pressure for him to appoint long-staying employees at the ESS even if he recently issued a new ruling on promotions.

Sevilla said he regrets not being able to finish the reforms he started but does not regret working for government. He noted that while corruption has not been totally eradicated at the bureau, he believes it has been lessened under his watch.

He expressed frustration over the lack of accountability among BOC employees, noting that of the 30 administrative cases he has filed only one has been resolved.

He wished the new commissioner would continue the reforms he has started. He also urged stakeholders to be vigilant and monitor what’s going on at the BOC.

Sevilla said he has no plans after leaving the service, only saying he expects to “drink a lot of beer”.

Talk of Sevilla resigning had been circulating on and off since his appointment as BOC commissioner in 2013, leaving one Cabinet official to quip that Sevilla is the most resigned commissioner ever. Another wave of rumors resurfaced just last week.

Before his stint at the Department of Finance, Sevilla was an executive director at investment bank Goldman Sachs, an associate director and sovereign rater for credit rating agency Standard and Poor’s, and chief operating officer of Synergeia Foundation, a non-profit organization which seeks to improve the quality of public education in the Philippines.

He graduated from Cornell University with a degree in Economics and Government, and holds a Master of Arts degree in Public Affairs from Princeton University. – Text and photo by Roumina Pablo