NINETEEN inmates in the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) had died from coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), a Bureau of Corrections (Bucor) official said on Monday, July 20, 2020.
A total of 343 persons deprived of liberty (PDL) have contracted the disease as of July 20, BuCor spokesperson Colonel Gabriel Chaclag said in a radio interview.
“Out of the 343, 311 po ang recovered patients natin. And the number of deaths ang total po ay 19,” he said. He did not specify the status of 13 others.
Chaclag said PDLs with mild or no symptoms are transferred to an isolation facility at the Site Harry inside the NBP, which has 300 beds, while those who are in need of medical attention are brought to a partner hospital.
He said some of the 19 mortalities came from Building 14, where high-profile inmates are held.
Chaclag declined to identify those who died.
But based on the records of Panteon de Dasmariñas, one of the official crematoriums of the BuCor, the remains of high-profile inmate Jaybee Niño Sebastian were among those cremated.
Sebastian was among the NBP high-value detainees who testified against detained Senator Leila de Lima, the former Justice secretary who was linked to the proliferation of illegal drugs inside the NBP.
According to a death certificate, Sebastian died of myocardial infarction due to Covid-19. He was cremated in a crematorium in Cavite on July 18 without his body undergoing autopsy examination.
The Panteon records show that 29 PDLs have been cremated in their facility.
On Sunday, BuCor Director General Gerald Bantag said they cannot divulge the names of the said PDLs due to the Data Privacy Act.
National Privacy Commission (NPC) chairman Raymun Liboro said PDLs are covered by the Data Privacy Act.
However, he said there were two laws that should be considered, the Data Privacy Act and Republic Act 11332 or the Mandatory Reporting of Notifiable Diseases and Health Events of Public Health Concern.
But, Liboro said it is up to the Department of Justice or the Bureau of Corrections to release information about any deaths in their facilities.
"We have to leave it to the controller which, in this case, the Bureau of Corrections or the DOJ, bilang controller ng information na ito," he said.
"Dahil ang controller ang may tangan ng record na iyan ay ang Department of Justice at ang Bureau of Corrections, sila ang merong polisiya dito based on their mandate, based on their policy in upholding public interest," he added.
He noted that persons with “legitimate interest” like victims or relatives of the deceased can access the information and it will be up to them if they want to share the information to others.
In a statement on Monday, however, Liboro said "there is a justified public interest to release information like details surrounding the deaths from Covid-19 of these high-profile inmates, especially when the personal information being sought is linked to issues already on the minds of the public." He mentioned Sebastian
DOJ Secretary Menardo Guevarra summoned Bantag to a meeting Monday to discuss the matter.
Meanwhile, Commission on Human Rights (CHR) spokesperson Jacqueline de Guia said they will conduct an investigation on the matter.
De Guia noted that the PDLs are vulnerable to disease due to the congestion in prisons.
“May kahirapan talalaga. Walang sapat na medical attention, kaya dapat makipag-ugnayan sila sa Department of Health (DOH),” she said.
“Kaya nariyan rin iyong panawagan namin sa Supreme Court na palayain iyong mga elderly at iyong mga may light offenses lamang to decongest,” she added. (SunStar Philippines)