MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – A Senate panel summoned Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) Director General Nicanor Faeldon to a Senate hearing on the application of the law computing "good conduct time" of convicts.
The hearing will tackle controversies brought by the initial inclusion of rape-slay convict Antonio Sanchez in the list of beneficiaries under the Good Conduct Time Allowance (GCTA) law.
In a subpoena signed on Saturday, August 31, by Senator Richard Gordon, chairperson of the Senate committee on justice and human rights, Faeldon is "commanded and required to appear" at the Senate hearing on Monday morning, September 2.
Faeldon has denied ordering the release of Sanchez due to the GCTA law, but the Sanchez family said it has a release order from BuCor setting Sanchez's release on August 20.
Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra has suspended the processing of early release of inmates pending a review of guidelines in accordance with the GCTA law. Malacañang also said Sanchez is "disqualified" from early release. (TIMELINE: The GCTA law and the controversy it has stirred)
Already, 1,914 heinous crimes convicts have been released since 2013 under the GCTA law. Their fate is now in jeopardy due to the controversy brought about by Sanchez's case. (READ: Is it legal to send back to jail released heinous crimes convicts?)
Senator Panfilo Lacson also said on Friday, August 30, that some convicts in the high-profile 1997 murder case of the Chiong sisters are now walking free. This is due to the GCTA law, reported the Philippine Daily Inquirer. Lacson added that another official, not Faeldon, signed their release orders.
DOJ order
In an interview with DZBB on Sunday, September 1, Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon said that the release of these more than 1,900 convicts was "invalid because it did not have the approval of the Secretary of Justice."
Drilon said that then Justice Secretary now Supreme Court Associate Justice Benjamin Caguioa issued an order that the release of convicts under the GCTA must have the approval of the Secretary of Justice.
This is in accordance with the provision of Republic Act 10575, or the Bureau of Corrections Act of 2013, which says the “DOJ shall retain authority over the power to review, reverse, revise, or modify the decisions of the BuCor in the exercise of its regulatory or quasi-judicial functions," Drilon said.
Opposition senators: Remove Faeldon
Drilon and fellow opposition senators, Risa Hontiveros and Leila de Lima, called for Faeldon's removal from BuCor following the controversy.
"Alam mo, kahit saan siya pumunta, mayroong controversy. Mukhang tuloy pag-iisipan mo kung dahil ba sa kanya iyan. Siguro naman panahon na para palitan si Faeldon," Drilon said.
(Anywhere he goes, there's controversy. You would wonder, is it because of him? I believe it's time to replace Faeldon.)
Drilon also said Faeldon should attend Monday's Senate hearing. Since a subpoena was issued, Faeldon would have to explain in case he couldn't attend, or else he would be detained in the Senate until he responds to the senators' questions, said Drilon.
He also noted that a provision in the GCTA law penalizes officials who do not implement it properly.
"The law prevents abuse of its implementation because it involves service of sentence.... If left unchecked, you are making a mockery of our justice system," Drilon said in a mix of English and Filipino. (READ: Beyond Sanchez: How to improve the Good Conduct Time Allowance law)
Hontiveros echoed the call for Faeldon's removal.
"Nananawagan ako kay Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte na patalsikin sa puwesto si Faeldon. Kailangang umaksiyon ng buong-buo ang Pangulo sa lantarang pambabastos sa ating hustisya."
(I call on President Duterte to remove Faeldon from his post. He has to act fully on the blatant abuse of our justice system.)
Hontiveros said Faeldon should be charged administratively and criminally. She also supports the call to overhaul BuCor, including its officials and internal procudures, likening it to the "general cleaning" of a house.
In a statement from Camp Crame where she is detained, de Lima said "Faeldon is just one of several Duterte appointees who are seemingly untouchables inspite of the more than a whiff of corruption associated with them. I need not name the others."
De Lima added: "Why can't Mr. Duterte get rid of these incorrigible subalterns of his? Are they that indispensible? For what ends? Anong hawak nila sa kanya?" (What do they have on him?)
Meanwhile, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said Duterte has yet to decide on Faeldon's fate.
"Until the President talks about it, the presumption is [Faeldon] has the trust and confidence [of the President]," Panelo said in a mix of English and Filipino in an interview with DZIQ on Sunday.
On concerns that Faeldon would just be reappointed to another post, Panelo said the President has "absolute discretion on that," pointing to the President's diskarte or strategy.
Publicize inmates already freed – Sara
For her part, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, daughter of the President, said Faeldon should offer an explanation over those already released due to the GCTA law.
"I think the [Office of the President] should ask him to explain and then exercise the power to review. Thereafter, they can fire or ask him to resign if they think he had no basis in law for all the releases made," she said.
The list of inmates already granted early release should be published because it is "laced with public interest," she added.
As for those imprisoned for heinous crimes, the President's daughter said: "They may reform inside the prison, but they should be made to pay for life for the depravity of the crime they have committed. That is the price they pay." – Rappler.com
