BRISK trade is to be made even inside the Cebu City Jail in Barangay Kalunasan.
A greyhound operation conducted on Feb. 29, 2020 pointed to collusion between some jail personnel and drug lord inmates. How else could authorities explain the presence of contraband?
According to an intelligence report of the Police Regional Office (PRO) 7, ordinary touchscreen cellphones that can be bought commercially at P10,000 are sold for around P50,000 inside the facility, while standard cellphones valued between P1,000 and P3,000 are priced at P20,000 to P30,000.
After the discovery, PRO 7 Director Albert Ferro was forced to accept the possibility that some jail personnel were working with incarcerated individuals, especially since contraband continued to be smuggled in despite their strict inspection measures.
Jail Warden Supt. Julius Arro said they were already looking into the matter.
Whoever is behind this smuggling scheme must be new or someone who has great influence with the powers that be.
Back in 2016, senior jail officials were relieved following the confiscation of millions of pesos in cash, illegal drugs and other contraband inside the prison. The warden was removed from his post and placed under investigation.
His successor, Supt. Jesse Calumpang, had pledged that there would be no special treatment of prisoners and rules would be strictly implemented.
Calumpang had also said he would replace all guards to start fresh.
As for Arro, he didn’t say how many jail personnel were involved in the latest corruption scandal to rock the prison. However, he admitted that drug issues continue to plague the jail.
To address the problem, Arro said he “plans to clean up the ranks in the CCJ, particularly those ‘connected’ with detained drug personalities.”
Yet, it is evident that Calumpang failed in the same endeavor four years ago, so perhaps it is prudent for Arro to change tack.