Overcrowded jail facility stops accepting inmates

KORONADAL CITY-South Cotabato's largest government jail facility has stopped accepting detainees and crime offenders, officials said.

Juan Lanzaderas, acting jail warden of South Cotabato provincial detention and rehabilitation center, said due to overcrowding of inmates, the local courts in South Cotabato have ordered a stop on transfer of crime offenders from various police offices to the provincial facility.

The facility, located in Koronadal City, was designed for only 500 inmates but to date, Lanzaderas admitted, it has 1,127 inmates, about 90 percent of whom were involved in illegal drug use and trade.

"A court order prevent us from accepting new detainees," Lanzaderas told DXOM-AM Radyo Bida.

He explained that jail facilities would like to ensure that the detainees are treated humanely while inside the facility.

"But if the facility is overcrowded, it would be difficult for jail officials to give the inmates their daily needs and comfort," he said.

Lanzaderas admitted that the number of inmates has dramatically increased since the month of May when the government campaign against illegal drugs was intensified.

"Many of whom were drug offenders, I did not expect the number this big," he said. "Overcrowded jail facility is also vulnerable to break in by inmates," he added.

The court order preventing more inmates to the provincial jail facility was a result of jail officials' recommendation.

Low number of court hearings in a month also contributed in the sharp increase of inmates at the jail facility.

Lanzaderas suggested that crime offenders may be transferred to other facilities of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) from various police stations across the province. (PNA/Sunnex)