ILLICIT cigarettes from other countries would be under heightened vigilance by the Department of Finance (DoF) after the seizure of undeclared loose Chinese-branded tobacco products in Manila.

In a message to reporters on Thursday, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez 3rd said he will direct the Bureau of Customs (BoC) to alert its counterparts in China and other countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) about the illegal entry of cigarettes to the Philippines.