SolGen Guevarra: “As former Justice secretary, I had absolutely no knowledge about this alleged excavation inside the NBP compound”
SOLGEN GUEVARRA – Solicitor General Menardo Guevarra said that he has no knowledge of the excavation site inside the New Bilibid Prison (NBP).
SolGen Guevarra said in a message to reporters on Wednesday that he has no knowledge about the alleged excavation inside the NBP compound.
To recall, Guevarra served as the Justice Secretary under the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
“As former Justice secretary, I had absolutely no knowledge about this alleged excavation inside the NBP compound,” Guevarra said. “The same being an operational matter, the BuCor probably did not find it necessary to inform, much less seek approval from the DOJ.”
The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) is under the Department of Justice (DOJ) and is in charge of the custody and rehabilitation of national offenders or those sentenced to serve more than 3 years of imprisonment.
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Earlier, Bureau of Corrections officer-in-charge Gregorio Catapang was asked if BuCor had funded the alleged tunnel that was dug under a swimming pool inside the national penitentiary.
Catapang said in an interview on Dobol B TV that the excavation was kept secret by the previous BuCor officials because there were no public funds appropriated for the excavation inside the New Bilibid Prison.
He previously said that they asked for the help of the DENR (Department of Environment and Natural Resources) as the excavation wasn’t given a permit and was considered to be “illegal quarrying”.
According to him, it’s up to investigators to recommend the filing of charges against suspended BuCor chief Gerald Bantag.
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