'Justice on Wheels' frees 52 P'sinan detainees

DAGUPAN CITY, Philippines  – At least 32 detainees at the city jail here and 20 overstaying inmates in Lingayen town were released on Thursday and Friday after a half-day court session of the Supreme Court’s Enhanced Justice on Wheels (EJOW) program.

Of the 83 cases heard here, 61 were dismissed, while a decision was promulgated for 22 cases.

Regional Trial Court Judge Genoveva Maramba said Court Administrator Midas Marquez and Deputy Court Administrator Raul Villanueva led the activity.

Lawyer Farah Marie Decano, Pangasinan chapter president of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines, said the resolution of the cases is justice in full speed.

“It’s if to a vehicle, our justice system suddenly shifted to a high gear because of its fast speed,” she said.

Jail Chief Inspector Jun Melchor Boadilla said most of the released detainees have been charged with minor offense.

Marquez said the EJOW program already released more than 6,000 overstaying inmates from different detention facilities across the country in the last three years.

He said almost 7,000 civil cases were also terminated through mediation.

Gov. Amado Espino Jr. lauded the EJOW program saying that it proved effective in the swift dispensation of justice especially for the poor.