Metro Briefs: Visiting hours at NBP reduced to 30 minutes

JUSTICE Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said on Monday that visiting hours for inmates at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) have been reduced from six hours to 30 minutes while Special Action Force (SAF) troopers conduct search operations to stop the illegal drug trade inside the facility.

He made the announcement after several relatives complained about the strict measures being imposed by NBP officials.

“The relatives of prisoners have been complaining as some of them are also involved in the illegal drug trade inside the compound,” Aguirre claimed.

Last week, SAF officers took over the security at the NBP compound,  particularly at Building 14 where convicted drug lords and alleged VIP inmates were detained.

According to Aguirre, the deployment of the SAF troopers have affected drug operations within the facility, prompting affected inmates to spread rumors that the elite task force was manhandling prisoners.

“ We should not believe lies about our SAF officials, let’s give them our full trust and confidence. These officers are well disciplined because they are the elite force of the national police,” Aguirre said.

At the same time, he announced that the Department of Justice would appoint more prosecutors and public lawyers to help in the prosecution of drug offenders and syndicates.

“We are really in need of prosecutors. We are inviting good lawyers to apply as prosecutors because we have 509 vacant positions for public prosecutors,” Aguirre said. Estrella Torres

Piston delivers ‘Sota,’ asks Duterte for help

A MILITANT transport group called on President Duterte  on Monday to assist jeepney drivers and operators in upgrading their vehicles rather than phase out jeepney units that have been on the road for more than 15 years.

In its “State of the Transport Address,” or Sota, the Pinagkaisang Samahan ng Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (Piston) rolled out a number of suggestions for the administration to address issues in the transport sector, such as providing government support for jeepney drivers and operators and scrapping the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority’s no-contact apprehension policy.

George San Mateo, Piston president, said that the government should provide a subsidy to small-time jeepney and taxi operators to help them maintain their vehicles.

He warned that if the administration were to push  through with the proposal to use e-jeepneys, it “would not help the economy” as it would benefit only foreign manufacturers of these vehicles.

A recent study of the Japan International Cooperation Agency, however, said that the government should find ways to make jeepney operation more efficient to help solve the crippling traffic situation in the capital. It noted that the “atomized” operations of more than 35,000 jeepneys and 5,000 buses in the capital were “ill-suited to the requirement of a modern metropolis.” Jovic Yee

Suspected drug pusher killed in Parañaque

A WOMAN suspected to be involved in illegal drugs was shot dead on Sunday evening while sitting under a pedestrian overpass in Barangay La Huerta, Parañaque City.

PO3 Walter Dulawan of the Parañaque police said the woman identified only as Shane, was about 25 to 30 years old.

She was dressed in a red undershirt beneath a sweat shirt, leggings, a pair of shorts and rubber sandals.

The woman appeared to be sitting on the bench of the footbridge’s concrete post on Ninoy Aquino Avenue near La Huerta Elementary School about 6:30 p.m. when the gunman shot her thrice in the chest.

According to an informant, the victim was a live-in partner of “Mago,” a drug peddler currently detained at the  Parañaque City Jail,  Dulawan said.

The suspect was believed to be alias Bilo, a cohort of the duo in the drug trade, police said Neighbors also said that the victim had compromised a drug transaction which prompted Bilo to have her killed. Erika Sauler