ILOILO CITY — The nine additional jail facilities being constructed in selected areas in Western Visayas are expected to address the congestion problem in detention facilities in the region.
In an interview Monday, Supt. Gilbert Peremne, Assistant Director for Administration of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) 6 (Western Visayas), said the national government has allocated PHP220 million this year for the construction of the facilities, which are up for completion early next year.
Peremne said the region’s 37 jail units are supposed to hold only 2,000 to 3,000 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) but are currently accommodating 9,595 PDLs.
One of the most congested jails is the Iloilo District Jail – Female Dormitory here, which is holding 244 PDLs but has a capacity of only 30 PDLs. “The national government is already addressing this,” he said.
One of the jail facilities set to rise at the Iloilo District Jail (IDJ) in Barangay Nanga, Pototan, Iloilo is a PHP66-million four-storey male dormitory to hold more than 1,000 PDLs, Peremne said.
Another extension female dorm worth PHP28 million will also rise in the same area and could house some 1,000 PDLs, he added.
The Metro Bacolod District Jail (MDBJ) male dormitory in Barangay Handumanan, Bacolod City also has a PHP40-million four-storey jail facility.
The towns of Dumalag, Capiz; Jordan, Guimaras; and Barotac Viejo, Iloilo each got PHP18 million for additional jail facilities.
Once completed, Peremne said some PDLs will be transferred to these facilities to decongest the existing jail units here. (Cindy Ferrer/PNA)
