Congestion, floods, neighboring squatters plague Manila City Jail

Congestion, floods, and a neighboring community of informal settlers.

Those are just some of the things that are plaguing that the Manila City Jail, which is housing more than three time the amount of prisoners for which it was designed.

In an exclusive for "24 Oras" on Tuesday, Emil Sumangil reported that the space was originally designed for 1,200 inmates, but it is currently detaining 3,700 prisoners.

Jail Senior Inspector Rommel Castro said that a mezzanine has been constructed to accommodate the number of inmates.

He added the the already cramped prison gets flooded at the entrance, the reception, the cells, and the clinic every time it rains.

One of the inmates shared that they stay on top of the tables when their cells get flooded.

"Yung mga bubong namin butas butas eh. Sa lamesa, Nakaupo kami, iba nakatayo," he said.

According to the report, the Manila City Jail has barely undergone changes since it was constructed in 1847.

But Castro said that the Manila city government recently took notice of the condition of the facility.

"Hanggang ngayon eh tuloy naming dinadanas. Nagpapasalamat nga kami sa local na pamahalaan kahit papano napansin nila kami," said Jail Senior Inspector Rommel Castro.

Another pressing problem that the facility is facing is the presence of informal settlers beside the jail.

Authorities at the Manila City Jail want the jail fence to be raised, and the houses moved further away from prison.

However, the request would have to undergo several process and require capital.

According to Castro, inmates get some of their contraband from the informal settlers.

"'Yung mga bintana na yan nakakapag-sneak in ng contraband," he said. —Jessica Bartolome/JST, GMA News