Pubdate: Mon, 12 Jul 2004
Source: Sunstar Pangasinan (Philippines)
Copyright: 2004 Sunstar
Contact:  http://www.sunstar.com.ph/pangasinan/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1726

FRIENDS OF DRUG SUSPECTS BANNED AT PROVINCIAL JAIL

FPM

LINGAYEN -- Suspected carriers of illegal drugs at the Pangasinan 
Provincial Jail (PPJ) have been banned from visiting detained drug 
personalities.

Chief Insp. Jerick Royales, acting jail warden, made the move to prevent 
the recurrence of the drug trade inside the PPJ.

"Only their immediate relatives are allowed to visit them," he said.

He has also put into solitary confinement inmates involved in creating 
trouble inside the jail to show that the management is serious in 
instituting reforms at the jail.

Royales said he separated members of the Abelardo Punzal group and placed 
them in various detention cells to prevent them from coming up with new 
plan on how they could continue their illegal drug activity.

The acting jail warden said the monitoring and surveillance of persons 
listed at the blue book confiscated at the cell of Punzal proved effective 
because there is no more illegal activity monitored in the jail for the 
past one month.

This, aside from monitoring conducted by the intelligence and investigation 
division and the special operations group of the Pangasinan Provincial 
Police Office.

Moreover, Royales also made an evaluation of the physical condition of the 
PPJ and had discovered weak portions of the jail building.

"The capacity is only 120 but we have 246 inmates. What we are doing is to 
look for folding beds that they could use at night and could fold at 
daytime," he said.

Expressing fear some inmates might escape, Royales pointed out the need to 
rehabilitate the perimeter fence as well as the wooden ceilings at the 
detention cells.

He said the inmates could make a hole at the ceiling where they could crawl 
out of the building's overhang that does not have a cover.

"Once down on the ground, they could easily pass through the fence that is 
already very low," he said as he disclosed that he had already requested 
for re-fencing but it has not yet been acted upon.

On the problem of potable water for the detainees, he proposed the 
installation of a water pump. "Many people are now into purified (mineral) 
water but we cannot afford it," the acting jail warden said.
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D