Jetti Petroleum vows to fight ‘baseless’ charge of oil smuggling

MANILA, Philippines—Independent oil player Jetti Petroleum Inc. is now looking at the possible actions it may undertake to disprove the allegations of smuggling slapped against the company.

“While Jetti has yet to receive the complaint, the board of directors and the officers of the company would like to assure its customers, shareholders, dealers, suppliers, creditors, and partners that Jetti will fight this baseless claim. Jetti Petroleum is in consultation with legal advisers as to what possible cause of action it may undertake,” said company president Joselito Tibayan Magalona.

Magalona issued the statement over the weekend, after the Bureau of Customs (BoC) filed last week a P4.1 billion smuggling case against him and two brokers of Jetti Petroleum for allegedly failing to pay the correct amount of duties on oil products it imported over a 12-month period beginning June 2010.

The BoC had alleged that the oil shipments made by Jetti Petroleum skirted “load and discharge port survey inspections” that were supposed to be made by any of the six government-accredited auditors.

“Jetti Petroleum takes this opportunity to state that it is not in any way involved in smuggling and, moreover, has no unpaid obligations to government. Jetti Petroleum is a law-abiding and responsible corporate citizen and taxpayer.  It has never been involved or implicated in any illegal activity,” Magalona said.

“Jetti Petroleum will, accordingly, spare no effort to protect the good name and business reputation it has carefully built and nurtured over the years from any erroneous or malicious imputation of wrongdoing,” he added.