PBA officials welcomed the appointment of Lito Alvarez as Customs commissioner and said the concurrent PBA chairman will be a great asset to the new government.

Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) officials led by commissioner Sonny Barrios welcomed the appointment of Lito Alvarez as Customs commissioner and said the concurrent PBA chairman will be a great asset to the new government.

Alvarez, 52, was appointed by President Noynoy Aquino on Tuesday and the new commissioner was immediately sworn into office at 10 a.m. on Tuesday by Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima at his Department of Finance office.

“I am pleased and proud to hear the news,” said Barrios. “My exposure to him and his work ethic in the PBA gives me confidence that he has the necessary tools to do well in his job so he can significantly contribute to nation building.”

Alvarez, who is president of Air21 and the company’s representative to the PBA board, relinsquished his position in the sports league. He was replaced by Rene Pardo of B-Meg who was previously the vice chairman.

Pardo shares Barrios views.

"He is highly qualified and will be an asset to the BoC because Lito is a good manager and he has proven that with the Air21 team,” Pardo said.

The former Sycip,Gorres, Velayo & Co. senior auditor will assume official functions during formal turnover rites at 11 a.m. today at the Bureau of Customs, with Purisima and outgoing Customs commissioner Napoleon Morales present.

Alvarez, who has six children (four boys and two girls), was with his wife, Maria Vilma, at the swearing-in ceremony. He will take his oath of office with President Aquino at 2 p.m. Thursday in Malacanang.

His first marching orders, Alvarez said, are to “meet revenue goals, work in close coordination with the Bureau of Internal Revenue to prevent tax leakages, and identify smugglers.”

A graduate of Far Eastern University and a Certified Public Accountant by profession, Alvarez worked for five years with SGV&Co. Before moving to Sunnyvale-based Advanced Micro Devices (currently Amkor-Anam, one of the biggest semiconductor companies in the country) as an accounting manager, and finally settling for the last 20 years with the Lina Group of Companies as, until recently, president of Air21, the sole licensee of FedEx in the Philippines.

He will be following the footsteps of his corporate benefactor LGC chairman Bert Lina, who served as Customs commissioner during the tenure of President Gloria Macapagal-

Arroyo and was part of the much-heralded “Hyatt 10” group “I have as an advantage having worked with Mr. Lina, Secretary Purisima, and former BIR commissioner Willie Parayno,” said Alvarez, a part owner of Burger King. “I have been properly trained by two former BoC commissioners and educated early on Customs matters.”