MANILA, Philippines – The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has expressed full support to the proposal to integrate all provincial jails to the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) to “professionalize and standardize the management of jails at the local level.”
Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon made the proposal in a bid to put up national and local jail systems under the Department of Justice and Bureau of Corrections and the DILG and BJMP, respectively.
“We fully support Senator Drilon’s proposal to bring all provincial jails into our fold at the BJMP because this will not only standardize policies and rules in managing jails but will also ensure that local jails are manned by highly-trained and competent jail personnel,”DILG Secretary Eduardo Año said in a statement.
Año said some jails managed by local government units (LGUs) usually employ ill-trained, ill-equipped personnel and lack adequate facilities making them prone to escapes.
“I am confident that with BJMP’s competence in managing jails and with its professional corps of uniformed jail officers, prison break incidents in provincial jails will be substantially reduced,”he said.
The DILG chief also
believes that the transfer of provincial jails to BJMP will also be
advantageous to local governments as they will not anymore worry about issues
like riots, jailbreaks, salaries of local jail personnel, and meals for the
persons deprived of liberty.
BJMP records show that there are 74 provincial jails nationwide. Thirteen of
these jails are now being supervised and manned by the BJMP by virtue of a
memorandum of agreement between the LGUs and the provincial governments.
Meanwhile, seven provinces have no provincial jails.
If the 61 provincial jails with a total population of 32,940 will be turned over to the BJMP, Año said they will need to hire and train additional 14,573 officers to man these jails.
Año cited the Republic
Act No. 6975 which mandates the Jail Bureau to take operational and
administrative control over all city, district and municipal jails. Under the
Local Government Code, however, provincial and sub-provincial jails are under
the management and control of the Provincial Governments making for a
disjointed local jail system.
Heinous crime penitentiary
The DILG chief also supports the proposal to create a Heinous Crimes Penitentiary (HCP) facility in the Philippines to purge the National Bilibid Prison (NBP) of high-risk criminals.
“Mabuti po iyon para mas mabantayan natin iyong mga illegal drug lords, CPP-NPA at terrorist groups,” Año said during the presentation of the proposed DILG 2020 budget to the Senate Committee on Finance.
Some senators earlier pushed for the creation of an ‘Alcatraz-like prison’ for convicted heinous criminals. The facility is being eyed to be set up in Palawan near the West Philippine Sea where face-to-face visitation with families will no longer be allowed.
“We strongly support your proposed bill to serve as a deterrent for criminals from further committing such heinous acts,” said Año.
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