Pirates warned of stepped up raids
If the things they sell are violative of pertinent laws, particularly the IP Law, then we will raid the stores of these violators
Daily TribuneIf the things they sell are violative of pertinent laws, particularly the IP Law, then we will raid the stores of these violators
The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines has warned that it will intensify operations against stores selling fake brands, especially this Christmas season.
In a National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights press conference, IPOPHL deputy director-general Teodoro Pascua aired the warning as more Filipinos patronize fake products, particularly at the Greenhills Shopping Center in San Juan City.
"More raids are coming. This is not to make the lives of our sellers in Greenhills tough, but we are just exercising our mandate to run after peddlers of fake brands. This will be a contributing factor to the development of our economy. There will be no investors to trust the Philippines anymore if their products are continuously counterfeited," Pascua said.
"If the things they sell are violative of pertinent laws, particularly the IP Law, then we will raid the stores of these violators.
We are calling out our kababayans to stop patronizing or buying fake products. Instead, buy local brands that are authentic and which can be helpful to our fellow Filipino MSMEs," Pascua added.
During his recent speech at the United Nations General Assembly in New York City, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. even highlighted that protecting intellectual property is essential to foreign investments.
Funding set
For his part, IPOPHL director-general Rowel Barba said they are asking for funding from the government for each member of the NCIPR, consisting of the Bureau of Internal Revenue, Bureau of Immigration, Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Information and Communications Technology, Department of the Interior and Local Government, Department of Justice, Food and Drug Administration, National Book Development Board, National Bureau of Investigation, National Telecommunications Commission, Office of the Special Envoy on Transnational Crime, Optical Media Board and the Philippine National Police.
Barba enjoined all member agencies to fully comply with Executive Order 736, which created the body, particularly in allocating sufficient funds to duly perform its functions, such as raising IP awareness, providing IP policy support, and strengthening the country's IP enforcement regime.
Under Section 2 of said order, NCIPR member agencies must "establish and institutionalize a permanent IP unit with adequate personnel and budget allocation."
More raids are coming.
"This objective of the order has yet to be fully realized since its creation in 2008 as some members have not obtained such adequate funds and permanent dedicated personnel," according to Barba.
Pascua, on the other hand, maintained that for any government agency, it is understandably challenging to obtain new funds for new endeavors. Still, with the urgent directive of President Marcos Jr. to support intellectual property and the creatives, "we could no longer afford any delay."
The NCIPR will work in the next few months to secure a budget to intensify our anti-counterfeiting and anti-piracy efforts and explore other funding mechanisms to achieve this goal," Pascua added.
The NCIPR in 2021 has registered a record haul of counterfeit goods cumulatively valued at P24.9 billion.
