BuCor exec bucks calls for Bantag to take a leave over Bilibid deaths

MANILA, Philippines — An official of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) said they would not be shaken by calls for Corrections chief Gerald Bantag to take a leave of absence amid the investigation on the deaths of high profile detainees at the national penitentiary.

“Tayo naman po as long as the trust of government and people is with the leadership of the organization, hindi tayo umaayaw at ang ating director general sa BuCor ay masigasig, nagtatrabaho pa rin at rest assured na ginagawa pa rin lahat para magawa ang kanyang tungkulin at hindi nagpapatinag sa mga haka-haka na ganyan,” Corrections spokesman Gabriel Chaclag said in a press conference at the New Bilibid Prisons (NBP) on Wednesday.

(As long as the trust of government and people is with the leadership of the organization, we won’t stop and our director general in BuCor is still working and rest assured he is doing all of his duties and he won’t be affected by these speculations.)

Asked if BuCor would attend a possible Senate probe into the reported deaths of detainees at NBP, Chaclag said they would “not turn down” the invitation as they would also coordinate with authorities during the inquiry.

The Department of Justice has confirmed the death of nine high profile detainees including Jaybee Sebastian, who was supposed to testify on detained Senator Leila de Lima’s drug charges. However, the justice department said it would be premature to say that the inmates died due to the respiratory disease.[ac]