BAGUIO CITY – With a total jail population of 474, the Baguio city jail’s male dorm is more than 400 percent above its ideal capacity of 100 while the female dorm has 101 or about 100 percent more than its ideal capacity of 50.
This was revealed by city jail female dorm warden J/SInsp. April Rose Ayangwa in Monday’s flag raising ceremonies at City Hall with Mayor Mauricio Domogan, other officials and employees in attendance.
She said that the ideal capacity per jail cell is based on United Nation’s standards. Ayangwa pointed out, however, that all inmates who are now called “persons deprived of liberty” (PDLs) in the city jail have their own beds or bunks to sleep on.
“Despite the congestion, we are happy to report that all our PDLs have beds or bunks to sleep on and not on alleys, hallways or quadrangle unlike those experienced in some jails in the National Capital Region,” she stressed.
Baguio city jail male dorm head J/CInsp. Elvis Danglose disclosed that much of the congestion was due to Pres. Rodrigo Duterte’s on-going campaign against illegal drugs. He said that 211 PDLs of the 474 inside the male dorm have drug-related cases while 45 of the 101 inside the female dorm have the same.
Ayangwa said that they plan to have PDLs drug-tested upon confirmation of consent with their lawyers and families. She added that all Baguio city jail personnel who underwent a recent drug test conducted by the local health department came out with negative results on illegal drugs./Gaby Keith
