Military camp, island readied for Bilibid inmates

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said military camps across the country will soon become detention centers for inmates in the maximum security at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP).

Retired Marine Maj. Gen. Alexander Balutan, the incoming director of Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), has inspected the Caballo Island in Cavite to check the facilities for inmates.

The overwhelming number of drug suspects who surrendered to the police has prompted the government to look for more facilities to serve as detention centers.

“Because we don’t have (enough) rehabilitation facilities, we will use military camps,” said Aguirre in an interview on Wednesday.

He said Balutan and Enan Orceo, incoming justice undersecretary recently inspected Caballo Island to check on the possible transfer of inmates.

“My initial assessment is that we can easily transfer 160 inmates and 40 support personnel from BuCor to Caballo Island,” said Gen. Balutan in a text message to secretary Aguirre. The text message was forwarded to reporters.

Gen. Balutan also said that the facilities in the Caballo island will only require minimum repair.

“We will just repair some facilities to suit our needs with minimum expenses,” said Balutan.