BuCor starts construction of P470 M state-of-the-art prison facility in Nueva Ecija
Officials of the Bureau of Corrections and Provincial Government of Nueva Ecija hold a groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of detention facilities in Palayan City where thousands of persons deprived of liberty are expected to be transferred once completed. (photo: BuCor)
The construction of the P470 million prison facility in Palayan City started today, April 20, with the ground-breaking ceremony on a 60-hectare property donated by the Nueva Ecija provincial government.
Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Director General Gregorio Pio Catapang Jr. said the facility is contracted for completion by December 2027.
Catapang said the prison compound will be a “state-of-the-art facility” that can accommodate 7,500 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs.)
The facility will have maximum, medium, and minimum-security camps; a reception and diagnostic center; a drug treatment and rehabilitation center; a correctional institution for women; vocational and livelihood facilities; agricultural production areas; in-facility courtrooms; and personnel housing, he said.
It will also have “comprehensive and robust” security features with fortified walls and fencing to secure the entire complex; elevated guard towers strategically positioned around the facility; controlled entry points equipped with monitored checkpoints and access control systems; advanced surveillance and communication technologies; and solar lighting to enhance energy efficiency and security, he also said.
The contract for the facility was awarded to Front Nine Konstruct Builders & Realty Dev Corp and Qonstech Construction Corporation.
Catapang led the ground-breaking ceremony together with officials of Nueva Ecija provincial government and Palayan City.
During the ceremony, Catapang thanked Nueva Ecija Gov. Aurelio Umali and assured that “the project will bring significant economic benefits to Palayan City during the multi-phase construction period as thousands of local workers will gain employment, stimulating the regional economy.”
Under Republic Act No.10575, the BuCor Act of 2013, the bureau is mandated “to establish additional correctional facilities to ensure humane safekeeping and effective reformation of persons deprived of liberty (PDLs).”
Records showed that the last prison facility construction in the country was the Leyte Regional Prison which was built 53 years ago.