COA: PH jails need 550,000 sq m additional space

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MANILA, Philippines — About three in five jails in the country were still bursting at the seams with persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) as congestion rates reached as high as 2,827 percent in 2023, way beyond acceptable standards, state auditors found.

Such conditions bring to the fore the government’s obstacles to reaching fully humane handling of PDLs where their health and overall welfare are prioritized.

Based on the latest annual report of the Commission on Audit (COA), 324 out of the total 482 jail facilities nationwide were overcrowded, or a congestion rate of 67.22 percent, which was far beyond the acceptable standards set by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and the United Nations for the treatment of prisoners.

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Most crowded

The three most crowded facilities were the Dasmariñas City Jail-female dormitory, which had a congestion rate of 2,827 percent; followed by the Muntinlupa City Jail-male dormitory (2,102 percent) and San Mateo Municipal Jail-male dorm (2,022 percent).

This reflects the “unhealthy living conditions of the PDLs,” the COA noted, adding that “congestion has always been one of the biggest challenges in carrying out its mandate in humane safekeeping and development of PDL under its care.”

The latest congestion rate was also virtually unchanged from 2022, when 323 out of the total 478 jail facilities, equivalent to 67.57 percent, were recorded.

Unfinished projects

With a total jail population of 117,425 last year, the government needs to create a cell area of at least 551,897 square meters to provide a “habitable” space of 4.7 sq m per inmate that meets standards, the COA stressed.

But the BJMP, which runs and supervises city, municipal, and district jails in the country, had a combined cell area of only 216,788 sq m in that year, it added. This meant that the bureau would need more jail space of at least 335,109 sq m to prevent jails from becoming full to the brim.

The COA also flagged unfinished construction projects for jail facilities in Metro Manila that contributed to the perennially high congestion rate. Among the jails that were “not fully utilized or nonoperational” as of end-2023 were Quezon City Jail, including its female dormitory and annex; and the Metro Manila District Jail.

“The significant delays in the completion of the project[s] were caused by numerous suspension orders and time extensions,” it noted.

Outside the capital region, the respective jail buildings in Tubao, La Union; San Fabian, Pangasinan; and the male and female dormitories in Gapan City in Nueva Ecija, had yet to become operational due to a lack of funding for the construction of a perimeter fence, electricity, and water connections.

According to the COA, PDLs could only be transferred to new jail facilities upon the completion of the construction of the perimeter fence, as it curbs any jailbreaks and the entry of contraband.

COA recommendations

Although state auditors commended the slight decrease by about 8 percent in the number of PDLs last year from the total jail population of 127,031 in 2022, the change still did not help the situation.

By area, the biggest drop in the number of inmates was recorded in Metro Manila, followed by Calabarzon, Central Visayas, and Soccsksargen.

Aside from ensuring that PDLs have a space conducive to reformation and rehabilitation, a decongested jail can also avert potential prison “gangs,” said the COA.

“Jail congestion not only results in health and sanitation issues but also amplifies gang affiliation among inmates,” it said in the report. “To ensure their survival, inmates cling to gangs or ‘pangkat,’ where they seek protection, a social support network, and crucially, access to material resources that are scarce in overcrowded facilities.”

Government auditors emphasized the importance of “continuous efforts to alleviate jail congestion” in bolstering public safety and improving the living conditions of PDLs in compliance with the UN minimum standard rules and the BJMP’s own manual on habitat, water, sanitation, and kitchens in jails.

Among the recommendations made by the COA to address jail congestion, which the BJMP management agreed to, were for the agency to request donations of lots to add more jail sites; and ask for more budget for the acquisition of lots for the construction of additional jail facilities, perimeter fences, and needed utilities, and facilitate the “early release of qualified detainees” in line with the good conduct time allowance law and other related policies.