MANILA – Some 300 troopers of the elite Special Action Force (SAF) have been deployed today at the New Bilibid Prisons (NBP) in Muntinlupa, Metro Manila to replace jail guards in an apparent bid to cleanse the national penitentiary where irregularities like gun running and the illegal drug trade allegedly remain rampant.
The move came barely two weeks after Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said the deployment was forthcoming to rid NBP of bad elements. He said the Marines may be called to take SAF’s place after three months.
The jail guards will for their part undergo months of re-training, according to news flash by ABS-CBN.
Aguirre had ordered the PNP Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) to search the NBP’s Building 14 for contraband items, during which 53 inmates, including high-profile drug lords, were temporarily transferred to two buses.
Meantime, Philippine National Police (PNP) chief, Director Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa reminded the elite police force to spurn possible bribes from inmates, stated a report by ABC-CBN.
“‘Wag kayong magpa-corrupt, ‘wag kayong magpapaloko sa baba. Isang report lang na isa sa inyo ay tumanggap ng bribe, kahit piso o kahit isang balot ng candy, that will destroy everything,” Dela Rosa was quoted as saying.
At the same time, he assured prisoners of their safety in the hands of SAF commandos.
“Ito pong mga dala namin Special Action Force, sila po’y mga pulis. Hindi sila mga berdugo. Huwag n’yo pong isipin na sila’y pinapunta rito para kayo ay pagpapatayin yung mga tao diyan sa loob,” he said.
President Rodrigo Duterte has branded the New Bilibid Prison very problematic considering that convicted drug lords are still able to continue with their operations even while inside the state penitentiary.
