ANOTHER shakeup in the top leadership of the Bureau of Customs (BOC) is looming with the surprised resignation of Deputy Commissioner for Internal Administration (IAG) Michael Cristobal Fermin.
While details on the circumstances surrounding the resignation remains vague as of this writing, sources confirmed that Commissioner Ariel Nepomuceno and Malacañang have already accepted Fermin’s courtesy resignation.
Fermin was promoted by Malacañang from BOC director to Deputy Commissioner only last April 2025.
He would be the second Palace appointee to resign from the agency after Atty. Marlon Fritz Broto, the erstwhile district collector of the Port of Subic, director of the Port Operations Service (POS) and director of the Collection Service.
It was during his stint at the Collection Service that Broto was forced to tender his “irrevocable resignation” while being investigated for alleged irregularities and was placed on ‘floating status’ by Commissioner Nepomuceno in September 2025 (Pinoy Exposé, September 14, 2025).
Earlier this month, the Customs chief has also relieved Paul Pacunayen, the head of intelligence at the Port of Manila (POM) for alleged involvement in smuggling activities.
He was appointed to the post at the end of September 2025.
Comm. Nepomuceno, however, leave the fate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service (CIIS) director, Thomas Narcise to Malacañang for being a Palace appointee.
Sources, however, averred that like Broto, Narcise is just “counting his days” as part of the agency before being asked to leave.
Narcise was appointed to the post in July 2025.
Also relieved and placed on floating status at the Office of the Commissioner is Director Ronnie Principe, the erstwhile head of the XIP (X-Ray Inspection Project), who was replaced by Atty. Rey Roland Bergado, the erstwhile chief at the Informal Entry Division (IED), Manila International Container Port (MICP).