The Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) (CDN FILE PHOTO).
STARTING January next year, provincial jail inmates will be transferred by batches to other other detention centers, such as the Abuyog Penal Colony in Leyte and the National Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City to decongest the already crowded Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) in Barangay Kalunasan, Cebu City.
Gov. Hilario Davide III said that the CPDRC currently holds 2,808 inmates, way above the facility’s maximum capacity of 1,500 inmates.
“The inmates were supposed to leave last October and November, but I postponed it after some of them requested to stay a little longer to give their family a chance to visit them. To be fair to everybody, I said okay, we will just give them time to spend Christmas with their families but those who are scheduled to be transferred on January will really have to leave by then. In the spirit of Christmas, we allowed them to stay for the meantime, but by January, they really have to transfer. We will not anymore entertain requests,” Davide said.
The governor said they have about 30 inmates who are scheduled to be transferred by next month, with other batches expected to be transferred in the succeeding months.
Although they have temporarily stopped accepting inmates as of August this year, Davide said the jail facility recently admitted three additional inmates as ordered by the court.
Acting CPDRC warden Dr. Gil Macato could not be reached for comment as of yesterday.