ILOILO City – This holiday season, inmates at the Iloilo District Jail (IDJ) in Barangay Nanga, Pototan, Iloilo have only one wish – to celebrate Christmas and New Year with their loved ones.
One of them is the 39-year-old “Tan-tan,” who told Panay News that he wants to be released from jail to be with his siblings and mother on Christmas Day.
“Wish ko for myself nga kontani matapos na ang kaso ko so that makaupod ko na ang family ko kay ang mother ko is not getting any younger,” he said.
Tan-tan, a person deprived of liberty for nine years, faces a robbery charge.
The Jaro, Iloilo City native said he wants to live longer so that he can spend more time with his family should he be freed. Tan-tan also hopes acceptance from the community if ever this happens.
“Tani maglain ang paglantaw sang komunidad sa mga preso nga tani mahatagan sang tsansa nga i-accept. Kay kon indi kami pagbatunon mabalik-balik lang kami kay diri (IDJ) namon na-feel ang acceptance,” he added.
Every Christmas, Tan-tan shares with his fellow inmates’ kids the gifts he receives from his family.
This is his way to celebrate inside prison. It brings him joy, he said.
“You have to share sa mga kaupdanan mo. Feeling ko kung naga-enjoy kag happy sila, happy man ako,” Tan-tan added.
For the 58-year-old “Inday,” seeing his children would be a great Christmas gift.
Inday, a mother of three, faces charges for violation of Republic Act (RA) 9165, or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.
She has been detained for more than two years now. In this period, none of her kids went to visit her.
“Makita ko lang ang kabataan ko. Maski isa lang ka bilog, okay na ako. Makahakos lang ako,” said Inday as she broke into tears.
Another inmate, the 47-year-old “Nene” also wants to go home and be with her children.
The Sagay City, Negros Occidental native was also charged for violation of RA 9165.
“Ang wish ko nga makapauli na ako sa akon mga kabataan,” said Nene, who has spent about five years at the IDJ.
Nene is optimistic that she can go out of jail to make this wish a reality, stressing that she has “done everything” toward reforming herself.
Like Inday, Nene’s children have also failed to visit her since she got detained.
Nene said she misses them so much. This is the reason that she is grateful for gift-giving activities held at IDJ, particularly one that is sponsored by Gov. Arthur Defensor Sr.
“Nalipay ako sa mga tawo nga nagakadto diri sa amon kay wala nila kami nalimtan. Sa likod sang kasubo, ara sila nga nagapabakod sa amon balatyagon, like kay Gov. Arthur Defensor nga every year ari gid sa amon,” said Nene.
According to jail warden Superintendent Vicente Papelera, the IDJ caters to about 2,050 PDLs, most of them facing drug-related cases./PN
