Moving high-profile inmates from the New Bilibid Prison to a more secure facility is okay with Senator Leila de Lima, but she also expressed reservations on Sunday about the idea of transferring them to other penal colonies.
De Lima said that while she was still justice secretary, then Bureau of Corrections Director Ernesto Diokno pushed the transfer of high-profile inmates at the NBP to penal colonies in the provinces.
But, she said the move only gave more freedom to some inmates to engage in illegal activities.
“Na-diskubre later na mas libre sila (inmates) doon. Hindi na-serve ang purpose kasi since mas konti ang ‘na-corrupt’ nila doon na mga tao, mas namayagpag sila, labas-pasok sila. So ibinalik sila ulit [sa NBP],” she told Super Radyo dzBB on Sunday.
De Lima ordered the transfer of 19 high-profile inmates from the NBP to an undisclosed holding facility in Metro Manila, after her surprise inspection in December 2014 at the national penitentiary found luxury items and posh living quarters for certain convicts.
All the 19 inmates were eventually moved back to the NBP and were placed in the highly secure Building 14 within the penitentiary's compound.
Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre earlier said the government is considering the transfer of certain high-profile inmates to a highly secure prison facility in either Camp Aguinaldo or Tanay in Rizal or an island.