THE Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) is considering recommending the granting of executive clemency to persons who are deprived of liberty (PDLs) ages 70 and above as part of its move to decongest jails in the country.

BuCor Officer in Charge Gregorio Catapang said elderly PDLs may be granted parole and Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) benefits if their evaluation shows that they behaved properly while in prison and were able to serve half of their sentence.

“There was supposedly an executive order signed by former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo that those at least 70 years old may be granted parole or executive clemency. But we’re still checking that,” Catapang said.

He said the BuCor is looking into this possibility to decongest jails, particularly the New Bilibid Prison (NBP).

Catapang said that in January 2023, at least 2,000 to 3,000 PDLs could be transferred to Fort Magsaysay in Nueva Ecija, a drug rehabilitation facility “that was not used much.” “There are two

bays [at For Magsaysay] that could probably fit about 1,000 to 1,500 PDLs per bay,” he said.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla has issued a directive to transfer elderly PDLs or those who are just waiting to be released to the said facility.

“We are still ironing out details of that plan. But those are our programs to help decongest the Bilibid,” he said.

The NBP has a congestion rate of more than 300 percent, according to the Department of Justice (DoJ).

As of October 2022, the NBP has 29,204 inmates, but it only has a capacity of 6,345.

Last week, 234 PDLs from various prisons and penal farms were released.

Majority of them were released on parole or have already served their maximum sentences with GCTA.

This was the fourth batch of PDLs released from prison since President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. assumed office.

So far, 5,301 PDLs have been released this year.

Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla earlier said that the DoJ was seriously considering the implementation of “supervised releases” of PDLs above 65 years old excluding those convicted for sexual offenses.

Remulla added that the number of inmates recommended for executive clemency could reach 600 before the end of the year.