PRESIDENT Rodrigo R. Duterte “made a show of inspecting the congested detention facility” when he visited Camp Bagong Diwa in Taguig City last Wednesday, Oct. 18, his leading critic, detained Senator Leila M. de Lima said in a statement.

Mr. Duterte said he was “happy” with the way the detention facility was being run by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP), adding that he found the conditions there “okay” and the jail cells “comfortable and clean.” Mr. Duterte also said he will provide television units to each jail cell by the end of October.

“[A]aliwin lang ang mga detainees para makalimutan ang gutom, hirap at hindi makataong kondisyon nila sa napakasikip na kulungan (The detainees will just be entertained to forget their hunger, poverty, and inhumane conditions in their congested jail),” said the senator, who is detained at the National Police’s headquarters on drug charges claimed by the administration.

But Ms. De Lima also said she “join[s] the President in commending the efforts of BJMP.”

“Such is no small feat, especially in light of reports that the BJMP is… currently congested by a rate of 600%,” she said, adding that the agency is “budget-constrained.”

A report by the Commission on Audit last June said the BJMP has a total average of 511% overcrowding as of end-2016.

“[T]he problem cannot be resolved by simply adding TVs in every jail cell. That is not a solution,” Ms. De Lima said, adding, “That is not even a band-aid solution… but trickery.” — Arjay L. Balinbin

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