PERSONS deprived of liberty (PDLs) are struggling to survive on P70 a day for their food and a measly P15 for their medical needs, party-list Rep. France L. Castro told the House appropriations committee on Wednesday as she backed the request to raise the inmates’ allowance to P100 a day.
Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BMJP) Director Ruel S. Rivera confirmed that P85 is the budget allocation for each inmate under the 2024 National Expenditure Program (NEP). Last week, Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin C. Remulla told the same committee that the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) has the same budget per inmate for next year.
“We have a request [to the Department of Budget and Management] of P100 per PDL and it considers the inflation as well as the increase in cost of commodities,” Mr. Rivera told the House panel. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz
