El Niño strains water supply at New Bilibid Prison
The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) is purchasing water from Maynilad as New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City experiences low water pressure and malfunctioning water pumps amid El Niño conditions.
BuCor Director General Gregorio Catapang Jr. said Wednesday that water supply problems have affected the national penitentiary, prompting authorities to seek additional supplies while repairs are underway.
“Right now, we are buying water from Maynilad as our water pumps undergo repair. We are now experiencing low water pressure even if we are near Laguna De Bay. It’s a good thing that Maynilad is helping us as they are using the bay to get water,” Catapang said during the 32nd National Correctional Consciousness Week celebration.
He said the water situation further underscored the need to transfer more persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) to penal facilities outside Metro Manila.
Catapang cited the Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm in Occidental Mindoro as a possible destination for additional inmates, noting that the government is developing the facility to ease congestion at NBP.
“That is why we are pushing the transfer of our PDLs to the penal colony in Sablayan, which is 300,000 hectares, para hindi na kami dumagdag sa problema kapag mga ganitong El Niño season. That’s the reason why we are developing it,” he said.
He added that the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm in Palawan has not experienced similar water supply problems.
BuCor has been transferring inmates from NBP to Sablayan as part of its efforts to reduce overcrowding, improve living conditions and expand agricultural and vocational rehabilitation programs.
The bureau is also preparing for the planned closure of New Bilibid Prison by 2028.
More inmates released
Meanwhile, Catapang reported the release of 266 PDLs from various correctional facilities during the observance of National Correctional Consciousness Week.
Of the total, 78 came from NBP, 10 from the Correctional Institution for Women, 42 from Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm, 17 from Leyte Regional Prison, 31 from Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm, one from CIW Iwahig, 38 from San Ramon Prison and Penal Farm, and 48 from Davao Prison and Penal Farm.
Catapang said 37,066 PDLs had been released since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. assumed office.
“And we are expecting that the number of released PDLs could reach, or even more than, 50,000 toward the end of the term of President Marcos Jr.,” he said.
He attributed part of the increase to the implementation of the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA), which reduces prison terms for qualified inmates based on good behavior.
In August 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that inmates convicted of heinous crimes, including recidivists, habitual delinquents and escapees, may qualify for GCTA benefits under Republic Act 10592.
The government, through the Office of the Solicitor General, has since sought a review of the ruling.