Muntinlupa Rep. Ruffy Biazon said the wall built on a road in the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) Reservation in Bgy. Poblacion is illegal.

The wall was erected by the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) preventing residents of the National Housing Authority (NHA) Southville 3 housing project from passing through the NBP to go to other areas in Muntinlupa.

BuCor sent a letter on March 18 to Poblacion Bgy. Captain Allen Ampaya informing him “that paths leading to the NHA, South Ville 3 and the route in front of Tower 8 going to the Minimum Security Compound will not be accessible to all pedestrians and motorists starting from March 20, 2021 (Saturday) at about 5:00 AM until further notice.”

In the letter, Asec. Gabriel Chaclag, BuCor deputy director general for operations and administration, said the road closure was for “security enhancement and health protocols implemented by the Bureau of Corrections amid COVID-19 inside NBP reservation area, and in support to the local government’s strict implementation of the curfew hours.”

However, Bgy. Poblacion said the letter did not say that a wall or permanent structure would be placed on the road.

Biazon went to BuCor on March 20 to inspect the wall and talk to BuCor officials. He told BuCor that he considers the wall on the road as illegal based on Article 694 of the Civil Code of the Philippines.

The article states that “a nuisance is any act, omission, establishment, business, condition of property, or anything else which,” among others, “obstructs or interferes with the free passage of any public highway or street, or any body of water.”

NHA residents said they have to go through San Pedro, Laguna or Daang Hari Road in Las Pinas to go to Muntinlupa because of the wall.

Biazon told Manila Bulletin that he also raised other issues with BuCor regarding the wall. He said there was “no proper coordination with barangay prior to implementation.”

BuCor did not also coordinate with the Muntinlupa City government, Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), and NHA before building the wall.

The congressman also said BuCor had no proper consultations with those who would be directly affected by the road closure including Southville 3 residents and the regular users of the road.

“The wall compromises the safety, security and health of Southville 3 residents. It sabotages a national government project, specifically the newly built Link road which connects Insular road to Biazon road. It sabotages the project by cutting off the intended users of the road,” said Biazon.

Biazon said BuCor Director General Gerald Bantag was not available to talk to him Saturday, March 20. He said if BuCor will not take action within a week, he will elevate the issue to the Department of Justice, call an inquiry in Congress, and file appropriate charges.

Muntinlupa Mayor Jaime Fresnedi sent a letter to Bantag on March 20 urging him to remove the wall.

He appealed to Bantag to use his “sense of compassion and soundness of reason in reconsidering your decision to what appears to us as a permanent closure of the portion of road that connects the said community to the rest of Muntinlupa.”

The mayor said BuCor should recognize “the right of the people to freely access its roads and other alleys especially when through the passing of time, right of way of residents of Southville 3 has already been cemented and established.”

In June 2018 during his time as BuCor chief, Ronald "Bato" Dela Rosa, who ran and won as senator in the 2019 elections, said one common way people used to smuggle illegal drugs to NBP prisoners was to throw shabu (methamphetamine hydrochloride) over the NBP maximum security camp’s perimeter wall.

The road leading to the Southville 3 housing project runs along the wall. At the time, Dela Rosa unveiled a plan to build a new access road far from the wall that can be used by people. He said once the new road was built, BuCor would block the existing access road.