500 convicts to be released from crowded prisons
SOME 500 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) are set to be released from across seven prison facilities nationwide on June 27, the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) said yesterday.
The number may increase to as high as 700 PDLs depending on the results of review on prisoners’ carpetas (records).
In January, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) to release more qualified PDLs in an effort to ease overcrowding in the country’s prisons.
The President observed that many PDLs were languishing in jail because they could not afford the services of good lawyers.
“Wala naman silang magaling na abugado. So that’s why we are in favor now to release many of them,” he said.
Apart from the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City, the other facilities under BuCor’s jurisdiction include the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm (IPPF) in Palawan, San Ramon Prison and Penal Farm (SRPPF) in Zamboanga City, Correctional Institution for Women (CIW) in Mandaluyong City, Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm (SPPF) in Oriental Mindoro, Davao Prison and Penal Farm (DPPF) in Davao del Norte, and Leyte Regional Prison (LRP) in Southern Leyte.
