Influential Military Men
While authorities were trying to decode evidence purportedly gathered from the Manila Pen, a former military official quietly passed away in his hospital bed at the Cardinal Santos Hospital last Friday. The statement released by a public relations man say that retired Lieutenant General Jose Calimlim died of multiple organ failure. The PR guy refused to say whether Calimlim had liver cancer, a rumor that circulated in the Subic Freeport when he took a medical leave last June.
Retired Lieutenant General Calimlim is said to be one of the most powerful men in the Freeport, but looking at his previous postings, I am moved to say he is one of the most influential within the military organization. A member of Philippine Military Academy Class of 1968, Calimlim was former chief of the Intelligence Service of the AFP, former vice chief of staff and erstwhile head of Presidential Task Force Aduana.
Cebuanos in general do not have a big memory of Calimlim’s military service, except for his stint with Task Force Aduana, under the regime of former president Joseph Estrada. Then touted by Malacañang as a special body that will combat smuggling in the Bureau of Customs, TF Aduana caused quite a stir in Cebu after Calimlim’s men raided the Norkis warehouse in April 17, 2000, and seized more than 300 big bikes. TF Aduana accused Norkis of smuggling.
TF Aduana built up the smuggling case against Norkis before the Bureau of Customs, but instead of taking a passive stance, Norkis founder and chairman Norberto Quisumbing Jr. decided to fight tooth and nail on two fronts: in the Customs Bureau where such cases are heard, and in Congress where he got the support of Cebuano congressmen to investigate the raid. NQ called the raid and seizure of 317 big bikes “illegal” as he showed proof that importation was above board.
After more than five months of perversely running after a legitimate businessman, President Estrada ended the impasse by deactivating TF Aduana through an executive order. I’m not sure now whether then District Customs Collector Rolando Yebes resolved the case against Norkis but the whole episode showed how a government agency could abuse its powers for purposes too terrible to state. The incident was an eye-opener for those in the business sector who thought that NQ’s best option was to settle quietly and not tangle with the presidential body.
Retired Lieutenant General Calimlim is said to be one of the most powerful men in the Freeport, but looking at his previous postings, I am moved to say he is one of the most influential within the military organization. A member of Philippine Military Academy Class of 1968, Calimlim was former chief of the Intelligence Service of the AFP, former vice chief of staff and erstwhile head of Presidential Task Force Aduana.
Cebuanos in general do not have a big memory of Calimlim’s military service, except for his stint with Task Force Aduana, under the regime of former president Joseph Estrada. Then touted by Malacañang as a special body that will combat smuggling in the Bureau of Customs, TF Aduana caused quite a stir in Cebu after Calimlim’s men raided the Norkis warehouse in April 17, 2000, and seized more than 300 big bikes. TF Aduana accused Norkis of smuggling.
TF Aduana built up the smuggling case against Norkis before the Bureau of Customs, but instead of taking a passive stance, Norkis founder and chairman Norberto Quisumbing Jr. decided to fight tooth and nail on two fronts: in the Customs Bureau where such cases are heard, and in Congress where he got the support of Cebuano congressmen to investigate the raid. NQ called the raid and seizure of 317 big bikes “illegal” as he showed proof that importation was above board.
After more than five months of perversely running after a legitimate businessman, President Estrada ended the impasse by deactivating TF Aduana through an executive order. I’m not sure now whether then District Customs Collector Rolando Yebes resolved the case against Norkis but the whole episode showed how a government agency could abuse its powers for purposes too terrible to state. The incident was an eye-opener for those in the business sector who thought that NQ’s best option was to settle quietly and not tangle with the presidential body.
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