MANILA, Philippines—The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has deployed 110 additional men to reinforce security forces at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP), heeding a request by new Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) chief Gerald Bantag.
“We want Chief Bantag to succeed,” said Interior Secretary Eduardo Ano in a statement released on Thursday, Oct. 10.
The additional men would come from the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP).
Of the 110 from the BJMP, 24 are officers of the bureau’s Special Tactics and Response Team.
Interior Undersecretary Jonathan Malaya told INQUIRER.net that the additional men would back up 195 men from the elite Special Action Force (SAF) of the Philippine National Police (PNP) which are already on duty at the NBP. The BJMP and PNP are under supervision of the DILG.
The deployment of more security forces to NBP, said Ano, was in support of the reforms being executed by Bantag in BuCor, particularly in the country’s biggest jail where the drug trade continued to thrive.
Ano said the additional men would be helping Bantag carry out reforms in BuCor and NBP “until such time that he is confident that his organic personnel can do the job properly and are rid of corrupt practices.”
READ: BuCor chief to crooks: Get out
Ano said the deployment comes after Bantag ordered the relief of more than 300 prison guards for alleged irregularities in the course of his campaign to cleanse the NBP.
READ: BuCor chief sacks 300 guards; Baloyo detained
Ano said the DILG would continue to extend help to Bantag “to ensure maximum security” while investigations are ongoing and regular jail officers “are on floating status.”
Año also expressed confidence that the implementation of the Good Conduct Time Allowance law would be done properly under the watch of Bantag, who was former director of BJMP Mimaropa and warden of jails in Parañaque and Manila before he was tapped to head BuCor.
The National Capital Region Police Office has also recently deployed 551 men to the NBP./TSB
READ: 551 metro cops to augment security force inside Bilibid