One of the notable provisions for
some modern criminal justice systems around the world is that, even if a
convicted criminal might be sentenced to lengthy or lifetime prison terms, they
might still have a chance of early release if they consistently show good
behavior during their incarceration. This is the “time off for good behavior”
or “good conduct credit,” something the Philippine justice system also has.
Unfortunately, the country’s system seems to have been exploited to the point
that several inmates convicted of heinous crimes were reportedly released on questionable
good conduct credits. The President has deemed the issue grave enough to call
on the released to surrender, and no less than 33 have.
ABS-CBN News reports that in the wake of the 15-day deadline
ultimatum issued by President Rodrigo Duterte this past Wednesday, for all convicts
newly-released from prison by “good conduct time allowance” to return to police
custody, 33 GCTA beneficiaries who were initially imprisoned due to heinous
crimes have surrendered as of Friday, September 6. This is in line with the
now-ongoing investigation in the Senate regarding questionable practices in the
GCTA program by the Bureau of Corrections, which saw many heinous crime
convicts released early.
In a breakdown of figures by the
BuCor, 9 GCTA-beneficiary ex-cons have surrendered at their headquarters in
Muntinlupa City, while 20 more turned themselves in at police stations
throughout Cagayan province. A former convict each voluntarily surrendered to
authorities in the respective provinces of Ifugao, Laguna, and Cebu. All these
are but a mere drop in the ocean of around 2,000 convicts – many of whom
committed “heinous” crimes – released under the GCTA law, which was also
expanded back in 2013. The Presidential ultimatum of April 4 gave these ex-cons
15 days from that time to return to police custody lest they be branded as
fugitives.
Questions about the good conduct
time allowance system in Philippine criminal justice arose when it was revealed
that former Calauan, Laguna mayor Antonio Sanchez, serving a total of 360 years
in prison for, among many crimes, the double murder of Eileen Sanchez and Allan
Gomez, was supposed to be released for GCTA last August. The fact that his
release form and many others under the 2013-expanded GCTA law were done so
under the authority of Bureau of Corrections Director-General Nicanor Faeldon
led to Faeldon stepping down from his position amid the controversy, which has
eyewitness accounts alleging practices like inmate relatives “paying”
monetarily for GCTA.
Even before the 15-day deadline given by
President Duterte arrives, the Philippine National Police will already deploy
tracker teams to find the GCTA-beneficiary convicts. The Department of Justice
is also in the progress of issuing a blanket immigration lookout notice for the
same released inmates.
Image courtesy of Manila Times
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