PRESIDENT Rodrigo Duterte has ordered the "total revamp" of the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor), in an effort to stop corruption within the bureau, MalacaƱang announced on Wednesday, September 18.
Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo made the announcement, shortly after he talked with the President over the phone.
In a chance interview, Panelo said the President wanted to undertake a "top-to-bottom" overhaul of the BuCor.
"Gagawa siya ng directive doon, pagdating doon. Basta total revamp. He will remove all of them there, remove yung mga opisyales, mga empleyado. Total revamp nga eh (He will make a directive when it comes to revamp. It will be a total revamp. He will remove all of them, remove the officials and employees since it's a total revamp)," he said.
"[Duterte wants a total revamp] because of corruption there. He wants to stop it," Panelo added.
Duterte's latest directive came following the questionable release of 1,914 heinous crime convicts, mostly based on good conduct time allowance (GCTA).
The President appointed on Tuesday, September 17, former jail warden Superintendent Gerald Bantag as the new BuCor chief.
Bantag's predecessor, Nicanor Faeldon, was fired by Duterte on September 4, following the early release of inmates convicted of heinous crimes.
Thirty BuCor officials were earlier ordered suspended by the Office of the Ombudsman because of the allegedly "strong" evidence that link them to the questionable release of inmates convicted of heinous crimes.
Records from the BuCor revealed that more than 22,000 prisoners, including 1,914 those convicted of heinous crimes, have been released from 2014 to early August this year.
The number of freed heinous crime convicts significantly increased from 62 in 2014 to 816 in 2019.
Panelo said Bantag would more likely have a "free hand" in choosing his subordinates, following the entire revamp at the BuCor.
"Siguro (Perhaps), most likely he will be given a free hand since he was designated as the new director general," the Palace official said.
To recall, Duterte hinted on September 12 that there might be an overhaul at BuCor.
In a speech in Bataan, the President said "everybody will have to go," as he cited massive corruption in the bureau following the implementation of the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) Act, a 2013 law that allows the early release of inmates on the basis of good behavior. (SunStar Philippines)