CONVICTS who surrendered but whose release was not for good conduct will be released immediately, the Department of Justice (DoJ) said yesterday.

The felons were released based on acquittal, commutation of sentence, pardon, and parole, Justice Undersecretary Markk L. Perete said in a mobile-phone message.

“The Oversight Committee on Corrections has constituted a panel to verify each and every release,” he said.

“We have met in the past days and will meet again this afternoon with the relevant BuCor officers whose task is to justify each and every recommendation for release,” he added.

“It’s a tedious process but called for under the circumstances,” Mr. Perete said. The Justice department will enforce the release in tranches.

Mr. Perete also said a joint task force continues to review the prison records at the Senate so they can come out with an accurate list of ineligible prisoners who got released for good conduct.

President Rodrigo R. Duterte earlier fired his prison chief Nicanor E. Faeldon for allowing the release of about 2,000 felons convicted of various heinous crimes. The law disqualifies them from early release for good conduct.

He gave the convicts until Sept. 19 to surrender or they will be hunted down “dead or alive.” Mr. Perete on Monday said 2,221 convicts have surrendered.

The DoJ and the Department of the Interior and Local Government has revised the rules implementing the law on early release for good conduct, disqualifying recidivists, escapees, habitual delinquents and convicts of heinous crimes. — Vann Marlo M. Villegas

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