THE Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) has dismissed 20 personnel while 70 others have been suspended due to various infractions since 2022 as part of the agency’s effort to cleanse its ranks, Director General Gregorio Catapang Jr. said yesterday.
Catapang said 10 others were ordered to pay fines, while 19 more were issued letters of reprimand during the same period.
“The cases of those disciplined personnel range from gross neglect of duty, misconduct and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, serious dishonesty, grave misconduct, neglect of duty, and insubordination,” he said.
The sanctions, he said, proves the agency’s commitment and firm stand to clean up its ranks and uphold integrity and accountability within the BuCor.
“This is a clear message that we will not tolerate any misconduct and inefficiencies in our organization while we will reward with promotion those who will uphold our ethical standard to ensure effective and fair delivery of public services,” Catapang said.
He warned BuCor officials and employees that he would not hesitate to take actions against those who will violate the agency’s rules and regulations.
The BuCor is tasked with securing more than 50,000 inmates detained at the New Bilibid Prison in Muntinlupa City, the Correctional Institute for Women in Mandaluyong City, the Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm in Palawan, the Davao Prison and Penal Farm, the Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm, the San Ramon Prison and Penal Farm in Zamboanga City, and the Leyte Regional Prison in Abuyog, Southern Leyte.
The agency has been beset by controversies in the past, including the alleged special treatment accorded to some prisoners and the conduct of illegal activities by inmates and their custodians.
In 2022, then BuCor chief Gerald Bantag and his deputy, Ricardo Zulueta, were implicated in the killing of radio broadcaster Percival “Percy Lapid” Mabasa in Las Pinas.
They were charged with orchestrating the killing of Bilibid inmate Jun Villamor, the alleged middleman who contacted the hitman to kill Lapid.
Catapang said while the agency is cleansing its ranks of misfits, 95 officers and rank-in-file personnel have been promoted since 2022.
