Lawyers urged: Help decongest city jail

CEBU, Philippines - Congestion at the Cebu City Jail is said to be worsening and one of the solutions seen to address the problem is tapping the assistance of legal institutions.

The Cebu City Council is urging the Public Attorney’s Office, the Integrated Bar of the Philippines - Cebu City Chapter, and law schools in the city to visit the jail and help in case assessment to determine if there are inmates that are overstaying.

“There is a need to address the worsening jail congestion problem of our existing Cebu City Jail, which is a matter of justice to our prisoners,” said Councilor Dizon who penned the resolution on the matter.

Superintendent Johnson Calub, officer-in-charge of the Cebu City Jail, said the facility houses 2,228 prisoners at present. He said that as far as the male ‘dormitory’ is concerned, the ideal number should only be 1,600 to 1,800.

Himself a lawyer, Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella, said lack of proper legal assistance is one of the reasons why the jail is overcrowded.

“There are those who have already served sentences beyond. Especially during the (October 15) earthquake, many have not been arraigned and are there for quite a long time already. So it should be decongested,” he said.

IBP-Cebu City Chapter President Mae Elaine Bathan said the IBP is willing to provide legal assistance to the prisoners. She emphasized, however, that they cannot simply intervene in an inmate’s case especially if that inmate has a lawyer.

In the same resolution, Dizon encouraged the business sector to provide employment opportunities to ex-convicts.

He said organizations such as the Filipino Cebuanos Business Club, Inc. and the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry are in a position to help ex-convicts reintegrate into mainstream society and give them a second chance at a normal life.

“It is a sad reality that ex-convicts seriously deal with social stigma and discrimination in terms of employments and livelihood opportunities,” the resolution reads. –/JMO (FREEMAN)