Lack of space halts transfer to new jail

The transfer of more than a thousand inmates from the Bagong Buhay Rehabilitation Center to the new facility in barangay Kalunasan was temporarily stopped due to lack of space.

Deputy jail warden C/Insp. Gil Inopia said that the new two-story building where the inmates were moved is now full after the transfer of 230 inmates yesterday.

BJMP officials hired jeepneys to ferry the inmates to the new jail yesterday amid tight security provided by the city's police units, the PNP's Special Action Force and jailguards from other regions.

Inopia said the new facility can only house 900 inmates. The other day BJMP successfully transferred 717 inmates and now it has more than 900 inmates.

"Amo pang gipanid-an ang sa taas (Kalunasan facility) kay puno-puno na ang facility, gi-identify pa nato kung pwede nga butangan ang bag-ong building," Inopia said.

The new facility has 24 cells that are now being occupied by 40 inmates. Each cell is six-by-six square meters wide and has its own toilet and bathroom including a water container.

Inopia added that kitchen and dining facility is under construction and will soon be ready, for the meantime food is cooked in BBRC then transported to Kalunasan.

Inmates transferred in the new facility will have to make do with the water rations being provided by the jail guards using water containers because the water system in the said jail is not yet finished.

Meanwhile, another building is still being constructed near the two-story building housing the inmates. Inopia said they have to wait for the said building to be finished before they can start transferring the remaining inmates, about a thousand, from BBRC.

The second building can house 1,200 inmates enough for the remaining prisoners yet to be transferred, but Inopia is not sure if it will be complete before the ASEAN Summit.

The BJMP has already asked the Bureau of Fire Protection to bring water to Kalunasan since the first day, they are also coordinating with DPWH for the finalization of the water supply source.

After a noise barrage in BBRC the other night four inmates were placed in isolation cells. Three of them, Obet Hegremosa, Allan Mosqueda and Erwin Suico, were tagged as the ones who started the trouble after spreading rumors about bad conditions in the new jail.

The fourth inmate was identified as Noe Padayao who reportedly started the fire near the gate and instigated other prisoners follow suit by throwing in their beddings and clothes.

However, the superior force of the combined BJMP and additional special units from the city's police restored calm after an hour.

No one was hurt during the incident, but still worried relatives rushed to BBRC upon hearing radio reports of what was happening. - Edwin Ian Melecio