MANILA—Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan said evidence points to Chinese syndicates, in connivance with Filipino accomplices and government insiders, as being behind large-scale agricultural smuggling operations in the Philippines.

During a Senate hearing on agricultural smuggling, Pangilinan likened the illegal trade to the operations of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), saying one of the “heads” of the smuggling syndicate also comes from China.

“Nabubuo na ang big picture: parang sa mga POGO, galing China ang isang ulo ng kamadang sindikato sa agricultural smuggling,” Pangilinan said in his opening statement.

He warned that smuggled food products pose serious health risks because they often bypass physical inspection, chemical analysis, and tests for toxicity or contamination.

“Malamang ang inaangkat na frozen fish ay sa atin rin nahuli—sa West Philippine Sea—ang ating mga isda, ninanakaw at ibinebenta sa atin pabalik,” he said, citing as an example a ₱68-million shipment of frozen mackerel from China that was declared as “chicken poppers” in import documents to enter Subic.

Pangilinan said investigations have exposed a “rotten system” involving dummy consignees, government insiders, and officials from the Bureau of Customs (BOC) and possibly the Department of Agriculture (DA).

He stressed that agricultural smuggling constitutes economic sabotage under Republic Act 12022, the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act, which carries a penalty of life imprisonment and fines up to three times the value of the goods.

“Walang ligtas—hindi ang opisyal ng Customs na nagbubulag-bulagan o nagtatago sa pangalang Mr. Carlos, hindi ang imbestigador na nagbabaon ng complaint files, hindi ang operator ng trak na nagtransport ng iligal na kargamento,” Pangilinan said.

He added that even employees of agencies such as the Department of Justice (DOJ), National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), Bureau of Immigration (BI), and the Philippine National Police (PNP) could be protecting smugglers.

“There is sufficient circumstantial evidence to believe that Chinese smuggling syndicates in connivance with local businessmen, protected by a number of employees and officials of the government in the BOC, NBI, PNP, DA, and perhaps even in the DOJ and the BI, allow these Chinese smugglers and their local partners to operate freely,” Pangilinan said.

He said these groups occasionally conduct raids and seizures to create a “semblance of law enforcement” while ensuring that no major smuggler is prosecuted for the non-bailable offense of economic sabotage.

“Lahat ng sangkot sa pag-smuggle ng pagkain, kaaway ng Pilipinong magsasaka, mangingisda, at mamimili,” he said.

Pangilinan vowed to continue the Senate’s investigation, noting that despite years of hearings and mounting evidence, “wala pa ring nakukulong na smuggler.”