About 27,000 persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) who were convicted of heinous crimes may soon be released with the good conduct time allowance (GCTA) ordered credited in their favor by the Supreme Court (SC).
GCTA credits under Republic Act (RA) No. 10592 are given to PDLs for good behavior during their incarceration. The credits shorten the jail sentence.
Among the heinous crimes in the country are treason, murder, piracy, rape, plunder, carnapping, infanticide, destructive arson, and kidnapping with serious illegal detention.
Last April, the SC declared that PDLs who were convicted of heinous crimes are also entitled to GCTA credits that would enable their early release from prison.
The SC ruled that "Article 97 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended by R.A. No. 10592, is clear that any convicted prisoner is entitled to GCTA as long as the prisoner is in any penal institution, rehabilitation or detention center, or any other local jail."
Bureau of Corrections Director General Gregorio Pio P. Catapang Jr. said the SC decision has become final and executory when the High Court denied the motion for reconsideration filed by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG).
Catapang said that of the 27,000 PDLs "the most immediate possible beneficiaries of this ruling will be about 5,039.”
“Hopefully by the end of December this year makapagpalaya tayo kahit 5,000 (Hopefully by December we will be able to release 5,000),” he said.
He also said he has already received instructions from Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla as to which inmates will be prioritized.
“Priority natin yung mga PDL na matatanda na at tsaka saikitin (We will prioritize PDLs who are elderly and sickly),” said Catapang who also said that those to be given priority are those at least 70 years of age and who are terminally ill.
But, he said, that Remulla told him "to ensure that those with multiple heinous crime offenses are not immediately released.”
At the same time, Catapang said he has ordered the creation of a Technical Working Group (TWG) to work on the revised Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR).
While the revision of the IRR is being done, he said that BuCor will start computing the GCTA credits of those convicted of heinous crimes and now under detention.