One of our news segments featured how inmates inside a Caloocan City jail slept. The small cell was filled wall-to-wall with inmates, like sardines in a newly opened can. But that's not the whole story. Because of the sheer number of inmates, they have to take turns lying down on the floor while the rest have to stand. Sleeping on the floor has to be done in shifts. Some have actually learned how to sleep standing up. They have a common bathroom which I dare not ask how they manage. Oh and did I mention they did not have beds or mattresses?
This is how ordinary inmates live in their cells. Some of their crimes? As mundane as vagrancy. Compare this to how the accused plunderers of billions of pesos are treated at the detention center in Camp Crame. A facility was actually built for them, complete with a cushioned bed, a newly built bathroom with shower along with a new sink. But all this still made Sen. Bong Revilla complain of his new found friends, rats and roaches. I also heard he shunned jail food.
The senator had to be reminded that he was in a cell, and not in a hotel which I am sure he is very much accustomed to. His complaining along with the comparison to regular inmates have kicked up a storm of criticism from almost all sectors, some saying that they should be treated like ordinary inmates so they can fully realize and experience what it feels like to be an inmate in the country's penal system. Right now, they might as well be in a hotel compared to the rest of the inmate population.
Media is also being criticized for having to report on everything that happens to them while in jail. I agree with that, actually. People do not need to know what these lawmakers accused of plunder go through in a day. Who cares if they are having a hard time, or are feeling the awful heat, or even having to share a room with pests. It could be worse. Actually, it must be worse for them. Lawmakers accused of breaking the law.
It really should no longer be asked if Sen. Revilla and Estrada are getting VIP treatment, because they are. All one has to do is view the video of the Caloocan City inmates. I can understand that these senators are still innocent until proven guilty, and that treating them inhumanely is not acceptable. But they should also look at the rest of the penal system. It obviously matters who the inmate is. There is preferential treatment for the likes of Revilla and Estrada. If ever they end up in New Bilibid prisons, probably all the more. We just cannot stop romanticizing everything about a politician/actor. That's just how this country is wired.