ROOFTOP PLEA Inmates at Iloilo District Jail in Pototan town stay for almost nine hours on a building rooftop to protest against their jail warden. PHOTO COURTESY OF ZARRAGA NEWS LIVE STATION
ILOILO CITY — The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) in Western Visayas is looking into the circumstances of the protest rally held by around 100 inmates at the Iloilo District Jail (IDJ) in Pototan town, Iloilo.
Jail Superintendent Jairus Anthony Dogelio, BJMP Western Visayas spokesperson and legal officer, on Monday said he cannot disclose the details of the investigation yet.
“I cannot conclude because we are giving adequate time to the investigators considering the complexities of the issue involved in this incident. Hopefully, by this week maybe, we can expect the result of the investigation,” he said.
Last August 24, the inmates held a noise barrage on the administration building’s rooftop. The inmates’ concerns include food services and jail management.
Dogelio said inmates may have protested against the jail administration due to the transfer of high-risk, high-profile, and high-value inmates to their new jail facility.
He also mentioned that misconceptions of scrapped pandemic restrictions outside the jail led to questions of unchanged visitation policies.
This was different from the calls made by the inmates to relieve the warden, Jail Chief Inspector Norberto Miciano Jr., who allegedly did not sufficiently feed the inmates.
Miciano was eventually relieved from his post while an investigation was being conducted.
“Although on the surface, their complaint was about food, there were also concerns coming out that we see as the real reasons as to why they had that noise barrage,” said Dogelio.
“[They also had a] misconception that it was already normal outside without any restrictions, so why were face-to-face visitations not being allowed yet? Those are just some of the reasons. They still have several concerns, heavy reasons why they did that,” he added.
Aside from relieving the IDJ’s warden, the BJMP also heeded the inmates’ request to follow the posted menu.
The jail commissary, where inmates can buy food and other goods, will be co-managed by the jail administration and inmate representatives.
Dogelio said that the commissary’s new management team would be in charge of fixing the prices of the goods, which he stated would be “competitive and reasonable,” and close to the Suggested Retail Price in stores outside jails.
“We want to hasten visitation because if we allow that they bring many goods, we will spend so much time inspecting these goods they bring, and then we will limit visitors to be accommodated. [BJMP-6 Regional Director Clint Russel Tangeres] has directed to [have] inventory [of] all goods sold at the commissary, deplete them and start anew,” Dogelio explained.