QUEZON CITY (PIA) — The failure to secure higher funds covering the food allowance of persons deprived of liberty (PDL) should not hinder the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) from providing meals well within the so-called “humane standards.”
In a press conference organized by the Philippine Information Agency (PIA), Jail Supt. Jayrex Bustinera, in his capacity as BJMP spokesperson, said that the bureau will form part of the multi-agency endeavor supporting the local agriculture sector by way of buying agricultural products directly from Filipino farmers.
According to Bustinera, the BJMP has already forged partnerships with both the government and private stakeholders, one of which embarked on an agreement with the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) and agrarian reform beneficiary organizations (ARBO).
“Meron na tayong agreement with the Department of Agrarian Reform para sa ating poverty alleviation program para sa ating mga farmers kung saan yung mga produktong ng mga ARBOs na accredited with DAR (Department of Agrarian Reform), dun kukuha ang mga jails natin ng bigas na kakainin ng ating mga PDLs para makamura at mapagkasya natin ang P70 na budget para sa bawat isang nakakulong,” Bustinera told reporters.
In August last year, the House of Representatives discussed insufficient food and medicines for inmates, during which the BJMP cited the need to increase PDL’s food allowance to P100 per day.
Under the 2024 budget, each PDL is only allotted P70 covering three meals per day and P15 pesos for medicines.
By his admission, Bustinera said that the P70 per day food allowance for the PDLs isn’t enough, for which he claimed that the BJMP since 2019 has been lobbying for an increase in the agency’s food allocation for detainees.
Interestingly, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) opted to keep the PDL’s food allowance as is. Allocations for the medicines, he added, slightly went up.
“For this year, we submitted a proposal for an increase in the allocation for the food allowance of PDLs. Pero recently, the authorities decided to keep it as is—P70 pa rin. Taun-taon naman isinusulong ng BJMP madagdagan ang pondo para sa pagkain ng ating mga detainees, but then again, may other priorities ang national government, and we understand.”
With the PDL’s food allowance at a standstill, the BJMP cited the need to come up with measures that would enable the agency to make both ends meet amid the rising cost of food—hence the partnership with DA and the ARBOs was forged.
“Given the inflation, market prices… since 2019 kailangan na talaga yung increase. May mga paraan naman kami ginagawa para pagkasyahin without necessarily altering the nutritional menu tulad ng pagbili ng bigas directly from our farmers.” (PIA DMD)
