Over 300 Bilibid inmates moved to Iwahig prison

THE Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) yesterday said over three hundred inmates from the New Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa City have been transferred to the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm in Palawan as part of the latest relocation of inmates to decongest the national penitentiary.

The inmates arrived in Iwahig on Sunday after an overnight trip on board a commercial vessel which left Manila on Saturday.

The persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) were escorted by 100 BuCor corrections and Special Weapons and Tactic officers, as well as police and Coast Guard personnel.

In April this year, 500 Bilibid inmates were also relocated to Iwahig.

“We continuously transfer persons deprived of liberty to various operating prison and penal farms of BuCor to decongest the NBP and to augment the manpower requirements of Iwahig for agricultural expansion to support the food security program of the administration,” BuCor Director General Gregorio Catapang Jr. said.

“The continued transfer of PDLs is also in line with the preparation for the closure of NBP by 2028,” Catapang also said.

Under the BuCor plan, the 350-hectare NBP lot will be closed by 2028 and will be used as a government center, national park and for mixed use purposes.