Census underway at Davao prison farm

DAVAO CITY – A general census is now ongoing at the Davao Penal and Prison Farm in Braulio Dujali, Davao del Norte following the Easter Sunday raid by New People’s Army rebels who fled with more than 100 firearms.

"What I have at the moment is a general census of the entire prison reservation area. I want to know who exactly are the people residing and staying within the area," Venancio Tesoro, the new prison farm’s supervisor, told The STAR.

"We want to identify who are just visiting. We also want to know who are the people who have no business being here," he added.

The prison reservation has an area of 6,000 hectares, 140 hectares of which cover the main prison facility and its administration building.

Most parts of the prison reservation area have been leased to the Tagum Agriculture Development Corp. (Tadeco) for a banana plantation.

The banana farm has been a source of income for a number of trusted inmates as part of the program preparing them for re-integration into mainstream society.