New Bilibid facility for ‘Very Important Prisoners’

Bureau of Corrections Director Franklin Jesus Bucayu with his men during a raid inside the maximum security in National Bilibid Prison, Muntinlupa.
EDWIN BACASMAS/INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines–The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) is set to begin the construction of a P15-million facility at the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City for segregated prisoners.

BuCor director Franklin Jesus Bucayu said the bungalow-type building to be constructed inside the penitentiary’s maximum security compound would house up to 50 inmates, who would be segregated according to classifications such as high-risk, highly violent, suicidal and others.

The new facility will initially be used by the 19 prominent inmates who were temporarily transferred to the National Bureau of Investigation detention facility in Manila prior to the raid on their prison quarters that yielded drugs, cash and luxury items.

“We’re targeting completion of the facility in three to four months, so it will be operational, at the earliest, by March,” Bucayu told reporters.

He added that the bureau had already commenced the bidding process for the project after getting the approval of the Department of Justice and securing funds from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM).

The new facility will be like regular jails where the inmates are confined to their cells and not allowed to roam freely in open areas.

The BuCor is separately seeking a P30-million budget from the DBM for the renovation of Building 14 which would be converted into a modern prison facility.

Bucayu said the two buildings would be a short-term solution to the problems at New Bilibid such as the entry of contraband, accusations of VIP treatment and abuse of prisoners’ privileges.

As a long-term solution, the BuCor plans to move the New Bilibid to Laur, Nueva Ecija.

“We are dealing with problems that are deeply rooted in the New Bilibid. This cannot be fixed in just a year. We need long term solutions,” Bucayu said.

Private firms have expressed interest in developing the state penitentiary and its grounds into a commercial district. The proceeds from the project, in turn, would fund the construction of a modern prison in Laur and the hiring, training and equipping of more personnel.