Bryan L. Ang, vice president for trade and industry of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), has requested the Department of Finance (DOF) to review the proposed new Customs Processing System (CPS) for the Bureau of Customs (BOC) to ensure that data from all transactions processed through the system remain under government control rather than that of a private contractor.
Ang told LogisticsNews.PH that public consultations are ongoing on the project – National Single Window through an Integrated Trade Facilitation Platform (NSW-ITFP)- , which aims to modernize the old and inefficient processing system of the BOC.
The NSW-ITFP is expected to facilitate trade by streamlining and digitizing processes for import, export, and international trade-related regulatory requirements. By enabling end-users and stakeholders to submit standardized information and documents through a single-point entry, the project seeks to enhance efficiency, transparency, and compliance across the international trade ecosystem.
According to Ang, he requested the DOF and the Department of Information and Communications Technology to look into safeguards that should be incorporated into the system to protect the data from all transactions processed through it.
The project proponent is a joint venture of Ascent Solutions Philippines Inc. and JAMC Holdings Corp. Ang described the proposed new system as very good and smart. “The technology is good, it’s a total solution,” he said.
The investment of this unsolicited project is PHP393.816 million at no cost to the government, but to be recovered via transaction cost over a 12-year concession period.
Data sovereignty
Although the project has not yet been awarded, what’s worrisome, Ang said, is that the current consultations are largely focused on how to upgrade the BOC system because customers are in a hurry, leaving behind the issue of data sovereignty.
Under the current proposal, the private proponent may have full control and access to the new system, which will serve as the gateway to all traders’ transactions at the BOC.
“Government should add safeguards and must own the data,” he said. Under the way the contract is being crafted, the proponent would provide the system to the government for free, but as the operator it would run the system, own the data, and charge a proposed processing fee of PHP300 per transaction.
“While it is not yet a signed contract, we should add safeguards that we own the data, and there is no sale of data to a third party,” he said as he likened the system to a tollgate for all transactions that pass through it. “How many transactions would pass through it, thousands,” he said.
Ang even suggested that the government simply buy the system and run it itself instead.
“The problem with this PPP project is that all the data that will be sent to us, all the entries that are filed, orders data, exporters data, will be sent to a private proponent. He can see all the data and all the cost of the merchandise from … where they bought the … That kind of sensitive data should only be controlled by the government,” he said.
“If the private proponent is the one that controls the system, he will be the first one to see it. He is the one who has the possession of the data. What prevents him from selling that data?”
Ang further noted that even ordinary activities, such as eating in a restaurant and using a phone to process payment, already exposes a customer to possible data breaches.
“The way it is crafted, it’s like when you cross a Skyway, the operator has access to your vehicle plate number, to your ORCR number. They have all of that. So, you have to put safeguards. I don’t know how, but the data should remain with the government and cannot be transferred to a private entity because what will prevent the private contractor from selling the sensitive data,” he added.
He believes though that if government systems and procedures are digitized, it becomes harder for corrupt practices to thrive because there is less red tape.
However, he reiterated the need to put safeguards in place, regardless of who wins the project.
