New sheriff in town

There's a new sheriff in town, so to speak. The Bureau of Corrections, the government agency that doesn't seem to run out of controversy the past two years, has a new chief, endorsed by DOJ Sec. Leila de Lima to President Aquino. You will recall that the past two BuCor chiefs were replaced because of controversies and anomalies that were uncovered during their respective terms, and the reason of not knowing what was going on at the New Bilibid Prisons just did not cut it. So it was just right that they were replaced. If they were not aware of the shenanigans going on under their command, then that just speaks volumes of their effectiveness to lead.

He is Francis Jesus Bucayu, recently retired from the PNP. He was once the head of the PNP Human Right Affairs Office, which I believe clinched his being recommended by Sec. de Lima to the President. The secretary has high hopes the he will clean up the NBP of its anomalies and controversies, and see to it that justice is rightly dispensed, a matter important to the families of victims. Prisoners being allowed to leave the prison, prisoners living in hotel-like conditions and criminal elements still being able to conduct their “businesses” while incarcerated! We're not even talking about the possibility that hired killers also come from the population of the NBP, a matter that has to be thoroughly investigated. All these happening under the noses of the past chiefs, allegedly without their knowledge!

But I still believe that to achieve a true overhauling of the NBP system, not only should the chief be replaced, but the entire staff as well, including the guards! Corruption and yes, criminality is so deeply ingrained at the NBP, that it would be best to replace everybody to eradicate familiarity between the guards and the inmates. To go even further, I believe it would be best to relocate the prison altogether, to a remote place far from Metro Manila. The temptation of being so close to the metro is just too much for prisoners! In other countries, this is exactly what they do. Places that are harder to get to, and harder to leave from. Something like Alcatraz, I guess. It's about time that those who have been convicted truly get the punishment that was sentenced upon them. It is about time that relatives of the victims, and the victims themselves receive justice for what was committed against them.

A job such as that of BuCor chief is performance-oriented. Much is riding on the shoulders of Bucayu, as cleaning up a cesspool of a place like the NBP will take a lot. Only time will tell if he is successful and eradicates all that is wrong and bad about the NBP, or if he goes the same way as his two predecessors. Hopefully not. I would hate to hear of another influential inmate roaming the streets of Metro Manila in his dark-tinted SUV, or how an inmate lives even better than most affluent free individuals, or how a druglord still conducts his trade while inside, or how assassins are temporarily set free to fulfill contracts.

Perhaps retirement was a better option?