ILOILO City – Jails in Western Visayas are bursting at the seams, with the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) placing the congestion rate this year at 280%.
Last year, the congestion rate was pegged at 340%.
BJMP Region 6 currently maintains 40 jail facilities and supervises 9,969 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs). Approximately 70% to 80% of these PDLs are facing drug-related charges.
With only 1,769 personnel managing 41 facilities, the staffing levels are critically low, said Jail Chief Superintendent Simeon Dalojo, regional director of BJMP-6.
There is a significant need for more jail facilities and personnel, he stressed.
“”We need a thousand more recruits to reach the ideal staff-to-inmate ratio for managing all our facilities,” said Dalojo.
In terms of infrastructure, ongoing repair and rehabilitation efforts are in place to accommodate the PDLs. Notably, a new BJMP facility is under construction in Leganes, Iloilo, which will soon replace the current Iloilo City District Jail located in Barangay Ungka, Jaro, Iloilo City.
Furthermore, a new jail facility is slated for construction next year in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental.
“We have an approved budget for next year that will enable us to construct more jail facilities in the region,” said Dalojo.
To ensure proper treatment of PDLs despite the congestion and alleviate concerns from their family members, BJMP is focused on humane safekeeping and the development of PDLs within the facilities, he stressed.
Dalojo said the management approach has shifted from punishment to rehabilitation, with emphasis on providing good treatment to PDLs and offering programs and trainings for their reintegration into the community.
BJMP-6 has also introduced livelihood skills training programs such as “Ink, Stitch and Thrive: Transforming Lives with T-shirt Printing and Apparel Crafting; Paper Charcoal Making; and Livelihood Products for Sale”.
Additionally, the “Education Behind Bars” program has enabled 3,192 PDLs to pursue education from elementary to senior school levels, with 58 PDLs attending college from January to June 2024.
Dalojo also mentioned an “after care program” in collaboration with partnered government agencies to ensure continuous reform of PDLs even after their reintegration into the community./PN
