By NG Seruela
The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) on Monday (Oct. 25) reported that more than 87,000 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) have received their COVID-19 vaccination.
In today’s Laging Handa public briefing, BJMP Spokesperson Jail Chief Inspector Xavier Solda said 87,043 out of 123,630 PDLs have been vaccinated against the disease and 43,341 of which have been fully vaccinated.
“Tuloy-tuloy po iyong coordination natin sa National Vaccines Operations Center (NVOC). Hindi po natin pinababayaan iyong ating mga PDL, bagkus patuloy po natin silang pinagmamalasakitan.”
Solda added that they also administered 81,722 PDLs with the flu vaccine and 3,812 PDLs with the pneumococcal vaccine. He said that the bureau’s vaccination continues to protect and help strengthen the health of the PDLs.
In relation to this, Solda said 4,441 PDLs out of 4,610 cases recorded since March have recovered, 50 cases are still active, with 50 casualties.
“Last six months bumaba na po, diri-diretso, hindi na po tumaas iyong bilang ng mga kaso natin sa mga BJMP facilities,” he said.
He reported that the BJMP also complies with the vaccine prioritization.
“Priority po ng BJMP iyon hong ating mga vulnerable PDL. In fact, simula ho noong nagkaroon ng first case sa BJMP, nag-apply na ho kaagad tayo noong reverse isolation method – ibig sabihin iyon hong pinaka-vulnerable, iyon hong mga senior citizens, may comorbidities ina-isolate na po ‘yan sila.”
Meanwhile, Solda claimed that the congestion rate in the BJMP is still a “challenge,” however, it is eased by the health and safety protocols being implemented. Moreover, he said that the congestion rate for the past five years has decreased from 612% in 2017, to 415%. -rir
