Bantag: I can be replaced

DOJ chief vows impartial probe on NBP deaths

MANILA, Philippines — Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Director General Gerald Bantag says he is willing to be removed from his post if he has lost the public’s trust and confidence.

“If I am not trusted anymore, I can be replaced. I am willing to step down from my position,” Bantag said over radio dzBB yesterday morning in Filipino. “My position gave me headaches anyway.”

Calls for Bantag’s sacking or filing of leave mounted amid the deaths of nine high-value prisoners ostensibly due to COVID-19.

There were speculations that these persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) were killed or released by the BuCor.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra yesterday said that even if Bantag would not take a leave of absence, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) would still be able to conduct an independent probe into the deaths of prisoners, mostly convicted drug dealers.

Guevarra confirmed yesterday that 476 prisoners died in various prisons nationwide from January to July 19.

Based on data provided by the BuCor since January, 476 PDLs died of various ailments, including those who were infected with COVID-19.

Among the PDLs who died, 21 prisoners succumbed to COVID, including three detainees from the Correctional Institution for Women (CIW) and the other 18 from the New Bilibid Prisons (NBP) in Muntinlupa.

Of the 21 PDLs who died, nine were convicted for illegal drugs-related offenses, prompting the NBI to conduct a probe on their deaths.

Of the nine high-profile PDLs who perished because of the virus, the Department of Justice has so far only confirmed the identity of Jaybee Niño Sebastian, a key witness against Sen. Leila de Lima on her alleged involvement in the illegal drug trade inside the NBP.

The BuCor had confirmed the death of Pasig shabu flea market boss Amin Imam Boratong.

A Pasig City court has set the arraignment of Boratong and his wife, Sheryl, on July 27.

Senate President Vicente Sotto III filed a resolution to investigate the deaths of drug inmates in the NBP.

In a three-page resolution, Sotto said the appropriate Senate committee to conduct an inquiry, in aid of legislation, on the death of PDLs in the NBP and other penal facilities under the BuCor allegedly due to COVID-19.

“Just more than 10 days after the afore-stated report, the BuCor reported 301 confirmed cases and 16 have died due to COVID-19,” said Sotto. “An alarming news has been going around that, at least nine high-profile inmates of the NBP, mostly convicted drug lords and detained in Building 14, a highly secured facility inside the Maximum Security Compound, died of COVID,” he noted.

Guevarra said he is leaving Bantag’s fate to President Duterte, who appointed him to the BuCor.

He explained that while the BuCor is an attached agency of the DOJ, they have no control over the bureau.

“Under the BuCor Law, the DOJ exercises supervision, not control, over the bureau. The BuCor director general is appointed directly by the President, and the latter’s trust is the measure of the DG’s continuance in office,” Guevarra said.

Bantag, in the same interview, insisted that the PDLs were indeed killed by COVID-19.

He shrugged off “theories” that they were executed.

“Who am I, Satan? I told COVID to kill them all?” the bureau chief said, asking how people could come up with such speculations.

BuCor spokesman Gabriel Chaclag told yesterday’s Laging Handa briefing that the suggestion that the prisoners were released is impossible.

“We want to assure the public that it is not true. Do not think that it is true, because the BuCor is serving well and we are following all the guidelines,” Chaclag said in Filipino.

The BuCor has recorded 260 confirmed COVID-19 cases among PDLs, with 232 recoveries and 21 deaths as of July 22, while 90 BuCor personnel also caught the virus, Chaclag bared.

NBI probe

Guevarra assured the public that the NBI is a professional agency and could conduct an impartial investigation of the death of the nine high-profile inmates due to COVID-19.

“On the matter of DG Bantag’s taking a leave of absence while the NBI is conducting its probe, we leave it entirely to Bantag’s sound discretion. But the DOJ will ensure that the NBI’s investigation will remain free and unhampered,” he added.

Reports that the BuCor failed to disclose information about the deaths of high-profile inmates during the past months reportedly caught the ire of some legislators, including Sen. Richard Gordon, who chairs the Senate Blue Ribbon committee and the committee on justice and human rights, and Sen. Franklin Drilon.

Gordon said he was very disappointed that Bantag failed to report their deaths. He urged the BuCor official to go on leave while an investigation is going on.

He added that the country is being criticized because of allegations that the BuCor weaponized COVID-19 and used it to either kill or set free high-profile PDLs.

Drilon, on the other hand, is thinking of calling for Bantag’s dismissal as head of BuCor.

“The failure to report is very catastrophic. They did not report the death of these high-profile inmates, whom they have had cremated. Under the GCAT (Good Conduct Time Allowance) these inmates should not have been released without permission from the Department of Justice. In this case, the release is permanent,” Gordon told The Chiefs aired over CignalTV’s OneNews.

During the same program, Drilon said Bantag should have been transparent, considering the previous incidents involving many BuCor officials involved in the GCTA-for sale scheme and other irregularities at the bureau.

“What we should emphasize is that during this time, transparency is very important. Insofar as this issue is concerned, why are many doubting the BuCor? Because last year, during a public hearing at the Senate, irregularities in the GCTA were exposed and therefore the people lost their trust, especially involving high profile prisoners,” Drilon said.

Drilon also pointed out that the initial position of Bantag was that they are prevented from giving a statement because of the Data Privacy Act, which is totally wrong.

“The Data Privacy Act is applicable to the living to protect the rights of the living, those who died are not included. Under the Data Privacy Act, the persons deprived of liberty would have no right as far as privacy in concerned, otherwise, if you sustain that, you need a search warrant to inspect the kubol,” he added.

Meanwhile, Gordon also rejected a request to transfer custody of one of the personalities in the “ninja cops” controversy from the New Bilibid Prison to the San Fernando City District Jail in San Fernando City, Pampanga.

He said Supt. Rodney Baloyo IV could not be transferred from the NBP to the San Fernando City District Jail since the whole Senate placed him in contempt for being evasive and changing his answers frequently during the public hearing of the Senate committees on accountability of public officers and investigations or Blue Ribbon and on justice and human rights. — Evelyn Macairan, Cecille Suerte Felipe