ROOFTOP PLEA | Inmates at Iloilo District Jail in Pototan town on Wednesday stay for almost nine hours on a building rooftop to protest against their jail warden. (PHOTO COURTESY OF ZARRAGA NEWS LIVE STATION)
ILOILO CITY, Iloilo, Philippines — The warden of the Iloilo District Jail in Pototan town, Iloilo, was relieved from his post on Wednesday after inmates staged a protest and called for his removal due to supposed insufficient food supply inside the facility.
Jail Senior Inspector Norberto Miciano Jr. was replaced by deputy warden Rudy Palmejar pending an investigation conducted by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) on the issue.
“In order for us to conduct an investigation thoroughly, we have to remove him (Miciano) so as not to influence (the investigation),” said Jail Chief Superintendent Clint Russel Tangeres, the BJMP director in Western Visayas region.
At least 100 inmates gathered on the roof of the jail’s administrative building starting 7 a.m. on Wednesday, carrying handwritten banners that read, “Gutom Kami! Layas Warden!” (We are hungry! Go away, warden!). They also held a noise barrage during the protest action that lasted past 3 p.m.
Jairus Dogelio, the BJMP Western Visayas spokesperson, told reporters that the inmates were supposed to attend Mass on Wednesday morning but took advantage of the chapel’s location to access the roof of the administrative building to air their grievances.
Transfer
Dogelio said the protest was triggered by the initial transfer of 44 inmates who were considered “high-risk, high-profile, or high-value” to another building.
He belied the inmates’ claims that they were insufficiently fed.
Dogelio said a designated food service supervisor had been monitoring the inmates’ consumption three times a day.
Each inmate has a budget of P70 for three meals a day—an arrangement which is being negotiated by the jail management and the inmates’ leaders.
A commissary for other food items, jointly managed by the inmates and the jail administration, is operating in the facility, Dogelio said.
He said the BJMP would investigate the inmates’ allegations, and “would make the corrections in due time.”
The inmates went down from the building’s roof shortly after an appeal from Iloilo Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr.
The governor promised to meet with BJMP officials to iron out differences and talk about whatever assistance the provincial government might extend.
The Iloilo District Jail in Pototan, built to accommodate 1,200 inmates, has around 1,000 detainees.
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