Ombudsman, Customs to formalize data-sharing deal in November

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The Office of the Ombudsman will sign a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the Bureau of Customs (BOC) in November to facilitate data sharing, Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla said Saturday.

“Itong November, we’ll be signing a MOA (memorandum of agreement) na with Customs, data sharing na. Customs, first time ‘yan mangyayari,” Remulla said in his radio program.

(This November, we’ll be signing a MOA with Customs on data sharing. It will be the first time this will happen with the BOC.)

In a statement, BOC Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno confirmed the planned agreement.

“Ombudsman Boying Remulla and myself have a common objective. To fight corruption in government. This is why the Ombudsman and BOC will formally sign an agreement to institutionalize the automatic sharing of data and other information so that cases will be strong and offenders will be held accountable. This is an effective deterrence against smuggling,” Nepomuceno said.

Remulla previously said the lack of data sharing with the BOC had hampered efforts to build strong anti-smuggling cases.

He also said the bureau had failed to provide complete documentation needed for the filing or investigation of cases.

The Department of Justice (DOJ), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), and the BOC had previously signed a separate MOA aimed at combating economic sabotage. —VBL, GMA News