
The Bureau of Customs (BOC) broke ground last month on the Manila collection district’s temporary office at the Port of Manila (POM).
The new office is “a temporary solution to provide POM with a more conducive workspace,” BOC said in a statement. The fire that hit the POM building on February 22 forced the collection district to set up its various offices in different areas within BOC’s premises at South Harbor.
The proposed prefabricated building with an estimated cost of P23.28 million will have two floors and is expected to be completed within 150 calendar days by Jethrock Construction Corporation.
Customs commissioner Rey Leonardo Guerrero, in his closing remarks during the October 30 groundbreaking ceremony, said that as a “permanent solution,” BOC plans to build a separate facility to house its central office, which is also currently at the South Harbor premises, and “it would mean that the South Harbor facilities shall be utilized by the Port of Manila.”