A Nation of Idiots: The Department Order No. 17-09

What exactly does Dept. Order No. 17-09 do?

1st, it makes an appalling distinction between imports classified as "educational, technical, scientific, historical or cultural books/ materials" for non-profit purposes (which can be brought into the country without duties), and the same class of imports that are "for sale, barter or hire" ( which will now be levied a 1-percent duty).

2nd, it makes an avaricious distinction between the class of imported books specified in the paragraph above and all other books imported into the country (which now be levied a 5-percent duty).

3rd, it makes an absurd distinction between all other books and "books or raw materials to be used in book publishing" (which, under the DOF's squint-eyed reading of the Book Publishing Industry Development Act of 1995 or RA 8047, will be the only class of imported books entitled to zero duty).

One of the dynamic innovations of RA 8047 was to expand the coverage of the landmark Florence Agreement, to include all imported books. What Dept. Order 17-09 has done, however, is to greedily narrow the scope of duty-free importation ,not only beyond the innovations of RA 8047 but even beyond the conventions of the International Law, Florence Agreement itself.

Today is the perfect time to throw books on the Government in equal share of their greed and corruption! Crap!