BuCor sees decreased NBP congestion

BuCor sees decreased NBP congestion | Daily Tribune

The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) has reduced the congestion rate at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) by 22.4 percent — from 313 percent in 2022 to 243 percent in 2025 — according to director general Gregorio Catapang Jr. on Wednesday.

In a midterm accomplishment report submitted to Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla, Catapang said the decrease was achieved through the construction of new facilities and the transfer of 11,601 people deprived of liberty (PDLs) from NBP to other prison and penal farms.

On Wednesday, BuCor transferred another 300 PDLs to the Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm in Occidental Mindoro to further decongest NBP. The bureau said the inmates arrived safely.

According to Catapang, a total of 23,629 PDLs have been released from June 2022 to June 2025, a 41.35 percent increase compared to the previous administration’s first three years. He attributed the achievement to the efficiency of the Management Screening and Evaluation Committee, the implementation of the Good Conduct Time Allowance and expanded access to parole and executive clemency.

The agency, however, still needs 32 more dormitories, costing P14.6 billion to fully address the backlog and Catapang disclosed that BuCor received P6 billion from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for the construction of eight dormitories, including a supermax facility in Sablayan.

Catapang said the bureau is developing its land and water assets to drive economic growth and social impact, adding that the BuCor is master-planning the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farms to be a mega-economic zone and plans to replicate the project in Sablayan and San Ramon Prison and Penal Farms in Zamboanga.

The BuCor has also confiscated nearly 140,000 prohibited items and launched digital services such as E-Dalaw, E-Burol and E-Hearing, with more than 44,000 digital services logged, to ensure PDLs can stay connected with their families.

In a statement, the bureau said it has hired more than 4,000 new personnel and that more than 10,000 existing staff are undergoing specialized training. Additionally, 157 personnel were either dismissed or suspended without pay for misconduct.

Remulla previously said the NBP would be fully vacated by 2028 and its reservation would be converted into a government center.