By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) broke ground yesterday on its new jail building at the Metro Bacolod District Jail in Barangay Handumanan, Bacolod City.

BJMP-Region 6 director, Jail Senior Superintendent Joel Superficial, said the new building will be four-stories tall and provide 30 dormitories, which can house 600 inmates.

The structure cost a total P40 million.

Superficial said, based on BJMP records, the number of inmates in the facility has risen by 600 percent, which has resulted in overcrowding.

Bacolod City lone district Rep. Greg Gasataya, meanwhile, said living conditions at different jail facilities has been a concern for quite some time.

However, he said Bacolod City is “fortunate” because the new building will feature new amenities and is projected to be completed in a year.

“We are blessed because this is the only facility in the province being constructed by the national government,” Gasataya added./DGB, WDJ