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A Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) official-turned-congressman is prodding his fellow lawmakers to join him in his mission to fix the Philippine penal system. 

In a recent privilege speech in the House of Representatives, Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Brian Raymund Yamsuan enumerated the figures that painted a picture of the "appalling state" of local jails. 

Yamsuan said jail congestion has reached untolerable limits, with prisons meant for just 12,251 inmates or persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) now housing 51,561 individuals, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) and the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor). 

“Our correctional system is in a stage of severe crisis,” said Yamsuan, a former DILG assistant secretary. 

In the New Bilibid Prisons (NBP) alone, jails meant to detain 6,435 inmates now have over 30,000 PDLs either crowding inside or spilling over to the facility’s open-air basketball court, Yamsuan noted. 

The solon said BJMP has also informed him that there were only 16 medical officers and three psychiatrists who can provide health care services to PDLs. 

“Therefore, distinguished colleagues, I ask this Congress to give primacy to measures that extend a hand of reform and redemption to our countrymen who deserve a second chance,” he said. 

“By supporting measures that will institute reforms in our correctional system, we show through concrete action, the strong commitment of the House of the People to the very principles of justice, compassion, and the belief in the potential of the individual to transform his life for the better,” he added. 

Yamsuan has filed House Bill (HB) No.8672, which aims to unify the country’s fragmented correctional system by creating a Department of Corrections and Jail Management (DCJM). 

In his speech, Yamsuan noted that the crisis in the country’s correctional system has spawned a multitude of problems, such as malnutrition and poor health among PDLs since jails supervised by both the BJMP and BuCor were allocated only P70 and P15 for the daily food and medical allowance, respectively, of each PDL. 

Another grave concern exposed by Department of Justice (DOJ Secretary Jesus Crispin "Boying" Remulla is the corruption inside NBP, where some jail guards have set up a lucrative business of charging 20 percent commission for money sent to PDLs by their friends or relatives, Yamsuan said. 

“It is easy to blame prison officials for the continuing deterioration of our correctional institutions. But they themselves are fighting hard to survive in a fragmented system riddled with red tape—a system that lacks the manpower and resources to effectively manage PDLs and provide them humane living conditions,” he said.