THE Lower House has approved on third and final reading a bill that that would give no excuses for jail guards, wardens and other custodial officers in the smuggling of various contrabands, including mobile phones, illegal drugs, guns, knives, among others, inside all detention facilities in the country.

If enacted into law, Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers, chairman of the House committee on dangerous drugs, said HB 6126 or the Contraband Detection and Control System Act mandates all prison and detention facilities to implement extensive contraband interdiction procedures through the employment of modern detection devices, units and technologies to cut the flow of prohibited objects or items inside all penal institutions.

“Sa tuwina na lang na may ipapatupad na Oplan Galugad sa ating mga detention facilities at may makukuha sa loob na maraming drugs, mobile phones, kutsilyo, baril at iba pang kontrabando, palagi na lang na may mga palusot ang ating mga bantay sa kulungan,” Barbers said.

The solon from Mindanao cited the recent Bureau of Corrections’ “Oplan Galugad” operation, conducted last October 2022, wherein government authorities were able to confiscate thousands of cans of beer and shabu inside the Maximum Security Compound of the New Bilibid Prison (NBP).

“The said operation also yielded a total of 66, 241 various contraband goods, 7,512 liquors, P55,000 cash, 1142 communication devices including computers, 1,314 deadly weapons, 1,019 cigarettes or tobacco, 104 gambling materials, and 150 uncategorized contraband,” he said.

Likewise, Barbers said the highly publicized investigation of Percy Lapid’s murder case has uncovered that through the use of a cellular phone, an inmate in Bilibid or NBP was able to hire gunmen from outside the prison in order to kill the victim.

Under HB 6126, the measure seeks to impose capital punishment of up to 40 years of imprisonment and a fine of Five Million Pesos (P5,000,000.00) to any person who shall introduce dangerous drugs and deadly weapons or those who will be caught in possession thereof in a prison facility.

The introduction or possession of other kinds of contraband in prison as defined under HB 6126 shall be penalized by imprisonment ranging from six years and one day to 12 years and a fine of P1,000,000.

To wipe out graft and corruption inside the correctional institutions, jail authorities who shall be found facilitating or assisting in the introduction or conveyance of these prohibited items shall also be punished with severe penalties, in addition to disqualification from holding public office and the forfeiture of all his/her retirement benefits.

Barbers said the proliferation of contrabands in prisons has remained a perennial problem and its never-ending presence inside the country’s correctional facilities has now transformed our prison institutions into breeding grounds for continuing criminality.

“The situation that we have right now in our correctional institution runs counter to very foundations of our criminal justice system that mandates punishment, reformation and/or rehabilitation of offenders for their crimes,” he said.

He said that is an “open secret” in some of the country’s detention facilities that affluent detainees, particularly detained or convicted drugs lords, because of their money, can buy themselves a number of privileges, such as having cellular phones, that are not allowed under the law.

“Ito ang dahilan kung bakit ang ilang mga naka-detain or convicted drug lords na may pera ay malaya pa rin na nakakapag-patakbo ng kanilang mga illegal na gawain tulad ng pagtutulak ng droga kahit nasa loob na ng kulungan,” he said.