From only 11 inmates being released through GCTA in 2013, the number skyrocketed to 1,036.

The initial implementation of Republic Act 10592 or the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) Law during the tenure of detained Sen. Leila de Lima as justice secretary had set the trend to the thousands of inmates being released by virtue of the law.

From only 11 inmates being released through GCTA in 2013, the number skyrocketed to 1,036 in the first year of the law’s effectivity or a year after the crafting of the implementing rules and regulations of the law by De Lima and then Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas.

Sen. Richard Gordon, chairman of the Senate Blue Ribbon panel that is investigating the abuse of the law, said the first year of its effectivity was when fundraising for the 2016 polls appeared to have started.

Of the freed inmates in 2014, 109 were heinous crime convicts.

The following year, the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) freed 1,979 inmates, including 159 who were convicted of various heinous crimes like murder and drug peddling.

De Lima served as Justice secretary from June 2010 to 12 October 2015 when she resigned to seek a Senate seat.

Among the BuCor chiefs under De Lima’s term were Ernesto Diokno, Manuel Co, Gaudencio Pangilinan, Rafael Ragos, Frank Jesus Bucayu and Rainier Cruz III.

From 2013 to 2015, a total of 3,026 inmates were released by virtue of the GCTA Law.

The same pattern was noted when Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II took over the Justice department.

The following are the GCTA releases per year from 2013 to 2019:

• 2013 or prior to the effectivity of Republic Act 10592 or the GCTA Law, 11 inmates, one of them convicted of a heinous crime, were released. Leila De Lima was Justice secretary and Rafael Ragos was BuCor chief then.

• 2014, which was the first year of implementation of GCTA Law, 1,036 inmates, including 109 heinous crime convicts and two through executive clemency. De Lima was still at Department of Justice (DoJ), while BuCor was headed by Frank Jesus Bucayu.

• 2015 saw 1,979 inmates released, including 159 convicted of heinous crimes, while three were granted executive clemency. De Lima was still Justice secretary up to 12 October 2015, when she was replaced by Benjamin Caguioa who served from 12 October 2015 to 21 January 2016. Emmanuel Caparas succeeded Caguioa and served until 30 June 2016.

• 2016 recorded 3,279 inmates being freed, 289 of them were heinous crime convicts, while four were given executive clemency. Vitaliano Aguirre II was the DoJ Secretary starting 30 June 2016, while retired Police General Rolando Asuncion was BuCor chief until November.

• 2017 was when 4,885 inmates were released, including 374 convicted of heinous crimes and 12 who were granted executive clemency. Aguirre was the Justice secretary, while another retired Police General Benjamin de los Santos assumed as BuCor director from November 2016 to 13 July 2017.

• 2018 indicated 3,929 inmates were freed, including 407 heinous crimes convicts, while two were granted executive clemency. Aguirre was still the DoJ secretary up to 5 April 2018. He also assumed direct supervision over BuCor from July 2017 up to his resignation, while Rey Raagas was appointed officer-in-charge of BuCor.

• 2019 was when the Supreme Court (SC) ruled in June favoring the retroactive effect of RA 10592. In that year, 3,566 inmates were released, 200 of them benefited from the SC decision and 821 of them were convicted of heinous crimes, while five were granted executive clemency. One convicted of heinous crime was denied GCTA.