I think Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan Jr. only needs more assurance that he will not be “touched” by suspected New People’s Army (NPA) rebels detained with him in the same jail. The NPAs will not act on their own and neither can they orchestrate his assassination even if they wanted to, as security is very tight in all jail houses, more so in provincial jails, which are usually not so big. The activities of prisoners are always monitored and any plan to kill him inside or within the premises of a jail would be next to impossible to execute. The government will look into his request for transfer, and our military has expressed willingness to take him into custody, if ever it will be allowed by a court of justice.
I am sure our jails all over the country are adequate, although far from modern and are in need of improvement and additional space. But what matters is not the place of detention but the people who are responsible for jail security and prisoner safety—the jail wardens and guards.
Palparan should just wait for his trial and prepare for his defense rather than worry himself too much about safety as it will do him no good. Those who are tasked to give him protection while in detention will not allow anything dreadful to happen to him.
—KARLO B. SISON,
sisonkarlo634@yahoo.com