The congestion rate in the prisom facilities manned by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) is down to 323 percent from January to May this year compared to the same period in 2023.
From January to May last year, BJMP spokesperson Chief Inspector Jayrex Bustinera said the congestion rate was at 370 percent.
In a news briefing, Bustinera said that this year the BJMP supervised 117,000 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) in its jail facilities from the 127,000 PDLs last year, with the hope of the number going further down with the construction of new jail facilities.
However, Bustinera revealed that from January to May 2024 there were 37,000 newly-committed PDLs in the BJMP facilities which accounted for the 10,000 PDL difference.
For instance, he said the Quezon City Jail, known to be one of the most congested jails in the country has now a “zero congestion rate’’ after some PDLs were transferred to the newly-constructed jail facility in Barangay Payatas.
Bustinera also disclosed that there were 142 newly-built jail facilities across the country.
Despite limited space challenges in the localities, Bustinera said that the BJMP remained tenacious in hoping to secure property donations from the local government units (LGUs) for the construction of more jail facilities.
He stressed that the locality of San Mateo, Rizal had agreed to donate a lot where the new jail facility will soon rise since the old one gets flooded during heavy rains, adding that the BJMP-manned jail facilities in Davao City, Cebu and Zamboanga are now ‘70 percent complete.’’