Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 10) — The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) and several other government agencies on Tuesday signed a memorandum of agreement seeking to address drug trafficking inside correctional and prison facilities nationwide.
The Inter-Agency Collaborative Group (IACG) is composed of BuCor, National Intelligence Coordinating Council, National Bureau of Investigation, Philippine National Police, and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency.
In a statement, BuCor chief Gregorio Catapang noted that 70% to 80% of over 50,000 inmates nationwide are charged with drug-related offenses.
Catapang said the task force will ensure that “persons deprived of liberties, drug personalities, or even syndicates do not benefit any further from the proceeds of their illicit drug activities and financially disable them from further engaging in the trafficking of illegal drugs.”
The MOA covers the New Bilibid Prison, Correctional Institution for Women, Iwahig Prison and Penal Farm, Sablayan Prison and Penal Farm, Leyte Regional Prison, San Ramon Prison and Penal Farm, and Davao Prison and Penal Farm.
Moreover, the IACG will have an operations center inside the NBP that will “concentrate on intelligence gathering, monitoring, and taking action to prevent drug-related activities inside the NBP and other prison facilities and penal farms.”
