Over 200 more inmates freed nationwide — BuCor

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 24) — Over 200 more persons deprived of liberty were released on Thursday from correctional facilities across the country, the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) said.

This came after 371 inmates were also freed in September under different conditions, such as their Good Conduct Time Allowance, as part of government efforts to address jail congestion.

In a speech at the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla reiterated the goal of the Department of Justice (DOJ) under his leadership to release a total of 5,000 prisoners by June 2023.

He also said he hopes to move those detained at the NBP, the national penitentiary, to different facilities closer to their families by 2028.

"Sana po ang mga piitan ay sa iba't ibang lugar na ng Pilipinas kung saan malapit sa pamilya ‘yung mga sesentensyahan at hahatulan ng korte [Hopefully, these prisons will be in various areas in the Philippines which are near the families of those who will be convicted],” he said.

There are around 30,000 inmates in the NBP, or five times its capacity.

The DOJ earlier said it is planning to build a super-maximum security prison in Occidental Mindoro which will house some 2,000 prisoners convicted of heinous crimes, for which it has requested a budget of ₱4 billion.