COA to BJMP: Solve Jail Congestion

The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) needs to acquire more land to address jail congestion rates, which have risen to as high as nearly 3,000 percent in some prisons in 2023, according to the Commission on Audit (COA).

- - Neil Jayson Servallos

In its recent audit report on the BJMP, the COA said 324 of 482 jails nationwide are congested, with occupancy rates of up to 2,927 percent, which is "far beyond the acceptable standards" under existing frameworks for the rights of inmates.

State auditors flagged 60 of the congested jails in Region 4-A that garnered a combined total population of 22,401 when these facilities were intended to house only 4,685 inmates.