Labella wants jail decongestion plan
With the increasing number of prisoners in the Cebu City Jail, Acting Cebu City Mayor Edgardo Labella urged city councilor and deputy mayor on police matters David Tumulak to create a decongestion program to solve the problem of overcrowding in the jail.
As of the last report, there are now 4,772 inmates in the jail which is designed for only 1,700 inmates.
Last week, the management of the jail asked the city government for financial assistance due to their depleting funds.
"Aside from acting for the increase in budget, let us also look into the possibility and aspect of decongesting the jail," Labella said, adding that Tumulak should make a recommendation to the mayor and the city council about his plans.
"There are things that we have to consider; decongestion, provisional prisoners…and determine those prisoners who are categorized as insular prisoners. By all means, they should be brought to the National Penitentiary," Labella said.
Tumulak said he is considering Labella's idea, but he is also mulling prioritizing to urge the national government to move for the speedy disposition of cases as one way to decongest the jail.
"There are some inmates until now, wa pa g'yud maresolve ang cases... So the government should support the judiciary by means of additional prosecutors," he said.
Tumulak has also requested the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology to construct and improve the jail facilities.
Intern/BRP