Substandard tiles, plywood finding way to market

MANILA, Philippines–The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) have warned the public of the proliferation of substandard tiles and plywood, after initial investigations showed that certain import shipments were released without the required clearances.

“More than half of ceramic tiles and plywood imported into the Philippines in July 2014 may have been imported and released from Customs without the required clearances from the Bureau of Philippine Standards (BPS) of the DTI. Further investigations are ongoing to establish the precise amounts, but there is sufficient evidence that the amounts already released are substantial,” the DTI said in a statement issued Tuesday night.

The DTI noted that of the 66,493 tons of tiles imported in July 2014, 26,226 tons (or 39 percent) were released without BPS clearance, while 14,704 tons (22 percent) were cleared for release, but may have already been released, without BPS clearance. For the 22,818 tons (or 34 percent) which were released or cleared for release, BPS is still verifying whether the appropriate clearances were issued.

This meant that only roughly 5 percent of the tiles imported in July were cleared for release.

Meanwhile, of the 31,077 tons of plywood imported in July 2014, 7,566 tons (or 24 percent) were released without the necessary BPS clearance, while 13,843 tons (45 percent) were cleared for release, and may have already been released without the necessary BPS clearance. For the 8,271 tons (27 percent) which were released or cleared for release, BPS is still verifying whether the appropriate clearances were issued.

The DTI and the BOC thus urged the public to be vigilant when buying ceramic tiles and plywood, which means a consumer has to look for the Philippine Standard (PS) quality or safety certification mark license/s; or Import Commodity Clearance/s (ICC) issued to manufacturers or importers, respectively.

Consumers should also ensure that the packaging or product has an authentic PS Mark or ICC sticker affixed on it.

“To ensure the safety of Filipino consumers and prevent the repeat of such occurrences, measures will be put in place to monitor compliance by importers as well as Customs examiners and appraisers of all import permit and clearance requirements more closely,” the DTI said.

Such measures will include the regular sharing of data on regulated imports with import-regulating agencies such as BPS, to verify whether they issued permits on Customs-cleared shipments.

Investigations will also be conducted, and when appropriate, sanctions will be slapped on Customs employees who cleared imports of regulated products without import permits.