The Bureau of Customs (BoC)’s current reforms are a step in the right direction to safeguard the agency against potential corruption, according to Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) Vice President for Trade and Industry Bryan L. Ang.

In an exclusive interview with DAILY TRIBUNE, Ang highlighted the urgency of the agency’s proposed Customs Processing System (CPS) as a key initiative in the BoC’s efforts to modernize and strengthen its core processes.

“The project in itself is extremely urgent and needed by the BOC now, especially [as] you have ASEAN integration for all logistics suppliers,” he said. “From the private sector, we want to take extra care.”

Announced by Finance Secretary Frederick Go during the Big Bold Reforms convention last month, the CPS is a digital platform designed to streamline and standardize import and export workflows, strengthen risk management, and enhance transparency through clearer audit trails.

The proposed platform is meant to act as the digital center of the BoC for trade transactions — an end-to-end electronic customs management system that replaces or upgrades older processing platforms. It is intended to handle the full lifecycle of cargo processing, from import/export declaration to clearance and payment.

Ang said the CPS is meant to serve as a much-needed upgrade to the Electronic-to-Mobile Customs System, the primary legacy digital platform currently used by the BoC, which Ang compared to switching from MS-DOS to a modern-day Apple operating system.

“Most recently, DICT helped them procure through PPP [public-private partnership] what they call a customs processing system powered by what is called a National Single Window for Trade Facilitation,” he said.

Ang noted that digitalization efforts such as the CPS are imperative in underscoring the government’s role in protecting its constituents while limiting additional interference.

“If you have such sensitive data, do you want it to be in the hands of a third-party supplier that you cannot control, or do you want it in the hands of a government agency, say DICT or DOF or BOC? Because every single entry on importation and export is entering this system,” he said.

Ang also commended BoC Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno for instilling discipline since his tenure began in the middle of last year, particularly through his anti-smuggling policies and seizures of illicit goods.

“[Commissioner Nepomuceno] is an expert in enforcement. In his previous post in the BOC, he was deputy commissioner for enforcement, and he’s showing us that he’s running after all these illicit smugglers. And this will strike fear into the hearts of these illegal importers,” he said.

“We fully support that. Smuggling destroys our industry,” Ang added.

Ang expressed full support for the BoC’s ongoing agency-wide digitalization efforts, including the CPS, noting, however, that safeguards preventing additional interference are just as necessary, such as preventing the sale of a secured PPP contract to a third party.

“It’s positive, except safeguards are needed. Safeguards are needed for that project. Do not allow it to be sold to third parties, and the data should be in the hands of the government. It cannot be in the hands of a private sector proponent,” he said.