MANILA - Imported items initially blocked by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) will be donated to victims of tropical storm "Ondoy," its top official said Friday.

In a statement, BOC Commissioner Napoleon Morales said the agency is working with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for the immediate release of used clothes donated by international institutions for people in storm-hit areas. This, he said, is under the instruction of Finance Secretary Margarito Teves.

Citing Republic Act 4653, Morales said used clothes are barred from importation into the Philippines. The law, however, does not prohibit the government from donating these items to victims of natural disasters.

"Alam mo kasi sa ilalim ng batas natin, bawal ang importation ng mga used clothing. We cannot even sell it or do a public auction on these clothes kasi kontrabando ito. (Under our law, the importation of used clothing is not allowed. We cannot even sell it or do a public auction because these clothes are declared contraband)," Morales said.

"So ang pwede na lang namin gawin ay kapag may mga sakunang ganito tulad ni Ondoy, idi-no-donate na lang namin sa DSWD. Ang na-i-donate na namin ay 4 na containers na tig-20 footer na puro used clothing, pati 2 container ng Maling (If there are calamities like this, we donate these used clothes to the DSWD. We've already donated four 20-foot containers of used clothes and two containers of Maling [a Chinese brand of luncheon meat]), he added.

Floods unleashed by "Ondoy" has killed 277 people, while 42 remain missing, the National Disaster Coordinating Council reported on Thursday. The tropical storm dumped the heaviest rains in more than 40 years in Metro Manila and its neighboring provinces on Saturday.

Some 2.5 million people were seen to be affected by "Ondoy," up 300,000 from the previous day's estimate. With a report from Agence France-Presse